“Mom,
even the animals are less stressed down here,” I told my mom on the phone after
hearing a lecture about the immune response of tropical toads and frogs. I was
certainly less stressed than usual, but the animals were, too? It’s true
though, animals in the tropics really do have lower levels of stress hormones
than animals in the temperate region.
Scientists aren’t really sure why, though one hypothesis is that it’s
because there is such a high level of parasites in the tropics, that animals
need their immune systems working full time to fight the parasites, and stress
inhibits immune responses.
I’m
sure many of us have had first-hand experience with this. I know I always gets sick after exam
season. When I’m stressed, I have aches
and pains and headaches and an upset stomach and colds all the time, and I’m
pretty much always stressed. So, I’m
pretty much always sick… except for here in Costa Rica. When I send pictures or video chat my parents
they always comment on how good and healthy and happy I look. I don’t know if it’s the sunshine, all the
exercise from hiking and climbing to the top of the observation tower, the
daily gallo pinto and fresh fruit, or just the fact that I’m living my dream
spending every day in the nature of one of the most biodiverse places on
earth.
So
when I got sick with a 101.5 degrees Fahrenheit fever, I was worried. Was it a mosquito-borne illness? I hate
putting on bug repellent, but I usually wear long pants and long sleeves. Was it some sort of infection? Maybe I forgot to wash my hands before eating
once? We had just learned about the
human immune system a few days before and how the immune response of having
fever serves to burn off any bacteria.
It doesn’t start to be dangerous for humans until about 102 degrees
Fahrenheit or 39 degrees Celsius, so if it’s under those temperatures, it is
better to not take any ibuprofen to allow the body to fight off the illness how
it knows best. This meant I spent a
whole day in bed sleeping and pushing electrolyte-rich fluids. At least I got a picture of my pale face and
gross-tasting electrolytes for our group’s “Tropical Afflictions” Instagram
where we document all the bites, bumps, bruises, and other ailments we get
while exploring the tropics.
Luckily,
it was just a one-day fever and by the next day, I was feeling fine. I asked my professor if Costa Ricans were
generally less sick and less stressed than Estadounidenses (citizens of the
United States), and he said that in fact, they were. His theory was that it is partially because
of the Pura Vida attitude. When things
go wrong, they could have been worse, so “pura vida.” You greet each other and say good bye to each
other by saying “pura vida.” It’s a
constant reminder that life is good. After
all, stress is bad for the immune system.
It’s
generally considered that the health care system in Costa Rica is better than
in the United States. I don’t know how
to fix that, but I do know that I can bring the “pura vida” attitude home with
me in hopes of the positivity allowing myself and everyone around to live
healthier lives. Oh, and I’ll definitely
take home a recipe for gallo pinto.
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