https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/why-the-elderly-can-go-downhill-after-the-loss-of-their-partner-9722041.htmlhttps://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/why-the-elderly-can-go-downhill-after-the-loss-of-their-partner-9722041.htmlhttps://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/why-the-elderly-can-go-downhill-after-the-loss-of-their-partner-9722041.html
Bereavement can have a devastating impact on the immune systems of older people and may explain why many elderly spouses die soon after the loss of their loved ones, scientists have said.
A study has found that a key component of the immune defences that protect the body against lethal infections is weakened in the period of grief when someone loses a person very close to them.
However, the researchers found that the phenomenon was only seen in people older than 65. Younger people appear to be less susceptible to the physical effects of bereavement on their immune systems, the scientists found.