BROKEN heart can cause 8 major disease..

COLDS AND FLU

Grief weakens the immune system, leaving us vulnerable to colds, flu, sore throats and tummy upsets. Again, the culprit is cortisol, which surges through our bodies when we are stressed to prepare us for a quick getaway from danger.

In order to give muscles and brain more energy, it diverts the body's resources away from our immune systems. Over weeks and months, that can make us far more likely to fall ill.

According to researchers at the University of Birmingham,  chronic severe stress makes us 20?per cent more likely to pick up a viral infection.

And there's a double whammy. Because cortisol suppresses the immune system, our bodies don't respond properly to vaccinations.

That means your annual flu shot will be less likely to work if you have been recently bereaved -- increasing the risk of getting  an infection.