Back in the 1980s and 1990s, several studies
were published that suggested that mental states may influence our immune
system via direct connections in the brain. However, it would take many more
years before scientists would begin discussing the crucial links between our
mental and physical health. Now, more and more work is becoming available that
suggest how negative and positive
mental states can predict different outcomes in the course of certain
diseases.
In
an article for Nature, Jo Marchant
reports on one scientist who started delving into how mental states might
influence our physical health back in 2007 with his work on isolation and how
it might impact our ability to fight disease, as measured with white blood cell
count. Steve Cole, who works as a professor at the Cousins Center for
Psychoneuroimmunology, has studied the actual changes in gene transcription as
related to different emotions and mental states.
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| Taken from http://www.pursuit-of-happiness.org/wp-cont ent/uploads/positivity.jpg |
“At one time, most self-respecting molecular biologists
would have scoffed at the idea” (458) Marchant writes, pointing out how many
years it took for psychoneuroimmunology to gain any footing. However, many have
begun taking notice of Dr. Cole when he and his team identified 209 different
genes that characterized lonely people from more sociable ones. For the people
who described themselves as lonely, Cole found that the genes that were being
up-regulated tended to help in the fight against bacterial infection, whereas the
ones that were being down-regulated aided with viral infections; the opposite
tended to hold true for the more sociable participants. When thought of in
evolutionary terms, these results can be explained such that people who are
more sociable tended to be around other people, so when one person got a virus,
there would have been a greater chance of contracting a virus from that person,
hence why it would be important to have stronger defenses against viral
infections if one is around more people. In contrast, the less social
individual would have a greater chance of getting hurt because he or she was
alone and without a group to support him or her and risked getting a bacterial
infection from potential injury.
Since then, Cole has explored more of the positive side
of mental states, looking first at the effects of reducing stress, and then at
how hedonic (which has more to do with satisfying needs) and eudemonic happiness
(the satisfaction with life) interact with physical health.
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| Taken from http://yourmedguide.com/w p-content/uploads/2014/05/metabolic_syndrome-001-1024x779.jpg |
Similarly, in her work in Cardiovascular Behavioral
Medicine, Dr. Jennifer Boylan has looked at cross-sectional and longitudinal studies
and found that both hedonic and eudemonic satisfaction predict lower levels of
metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome affects nearly 30% of adult Americans
and is a means of studying cardiometabolism since its symptoms are often a
precursor to many cardiovascular diseases, as well as Type 2 Diabetes, and
stroke. Boylan & Ryff built off of an existing longitudinal Midlife in the
United States (MIDUS) survey that began in 1995-1996, which collected survey
data in 2004-2005 and collected biological data from 2004-2009. Even after controlling
for a variety of factors including depression and socioeconomic status, the
study found that people who exhibited higher levels of self-acceptance,
feelings of personal growth, and other indicators of positive affect, had a
lower risk of metabolic syndrome, and thus other potential risks relating to
cardiometabolic functioning.
Does this mean happier people are generally healthier?
There are a lot of factors involved and certainly more research to be done, but
these two scientists, Dr. Cole and Dr. Boylan, are working towards a greater
understanding of the link between our mental and physical health, which may
ultimately unravel innovative types of therapy and preventive measures that can
help reduce the chance for various disease by using a little bit of positive
thinking.
Works Cited:
Boylan, J.M. & Ryff,
C.D.(2015). Psychological Well-Being and Metabolic Syndrome: Findings from the
Midlife in the United States National Sample. Psychosomatic Medicine, 77, 548-558.
Marchant, Jo (2013). Immunology:
the pursuit of happiness. Nature, 503. Retrieved from http://www.nature.com/news/immunology-the-pursuit-of-happiness-1.14225
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