Routine experiences of discrimination leave lasting marks on the immune system, causing white blood cells to become exhausted and less effective at fighting disease, according to new research from NYU School of Global Public Health. The study reveals a biological pathway through which social inequities contribute to health disparities affecting minority communities.
Researchers examined blood samples and surveys from 6,337 adults aged 50 and older, asking participants about everyday discrimination experiences such as being treated with less respect, perceived as unintelligent, or receiving inferior service in restaurants and medical settings. These encounters could stem from race, gender, economic status, or other social identities.
Emiko Kranz, the study’s lead author, explains that their findings suggest everyday experiences of social disadvantage leave physiological traces that accumulate over time. The research team discovered that people reporting higher discrimination levels had elevated counts of certain T cells and B cells, but specifically those in a terminally differentiated or exhausted state with diminished functionality.
Previous research focused primarily on discrimination’s link to inflammation markers like C-reactive protein. Kranz notes they wanted to examine the physical response in immune systems and how discriminatory stress impacts immune cell populations. The terminally differentiated cells result from repeated activation and have impaired capacity to mount robust immune responses.
Senior author Adolfo Cuevas emphasizes the study builds upon established research linking discrimination to systemic inflammation, revealing another way psychosocial stressors become embodied and may contribute to age-related disease processes. The findings suggest discrimination shapes immune health at the cellular level, promoting biological aging.
See: “Discrimination is linked to diminished immune system function” (January 26, 2026)
