UNDATED (WTVB) - A new study suggests people who are lonely may suffer harm to their immune system. It indicates that lonely people experience more reactivation of latent viruses in their systems than people who know and spend time with others socially.

Lonely people also are more likely to produce inflammatory compounds in response to stress, which is linked to heart disease and other chronic ailments.

The study was presented this past Saturday at the annual meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology.