A healthy, nutrition-rich diet is essential to maintaining a proper balance of cytokines. Lack of sleep, nutritional deficiencies, and a sedentary lifestyle contribute to poorly balanced cytokine production, which could compromise the immune system. Acute stress over a short time lowers production of inflammatory cytokines while increasing anti-inflammatory cytokines, but chronic stress results in higher levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Chronic stress is a risk factor for many negative health conditions including inflammatory disease, depression, and fatigue.

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