The precise calculations of blackbody radiation (BBR)-induced Stark shifts and depopulation rates for low-lying states of a helium atom with the use of the variational approach are presented. An effect of the BBR-induced Stark-mixing of energy levels is considered. It is shown that this effect leads to a significant reduction in the lifetimes of helium-excited states. As a consequence, the influence of the Stark-mixing effect on the decay rates of metastable states in helium is discussed in the context of formation processes of the cosmic microwave background.