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Depression: A revolution in treatment?

PostPosted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 11:33 pm
by Josefine
This is a very useful article to consider the effect of diet on the body and the mind etc.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-37166293

You may als want o listen to The Inflamed Mind documentary on BBC Radio 4:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07pj2pw

Here too are some thoughts about how emotions affect our bodies- vital for cansurvivors to know this:

The profound effect that emotions have on health and lifespan can be evidenced by a groundbreaking series of 10-year-long studies published in the British journal Psychology and Psychotherapy in 1988. The study, which is just as relevant today, concluded that “emotional stress was more predictive of death from cancer or cardiovascular disease than from smoking.” It also found that individuals who were the most affected by stress had an overall death rate that was 40% higher than non-stressed participants.

So just how do emotions have such an effect on our bodies?

The term psychosomatic is normally associated with “imaginary illnesses.” In fact, the term simply relates to the physiological connections between mind and body. In modern scientific terms, this connection happens through tiny molecular structures called neuropeptides.
neuropeptides.jpg
neuropeptides.jpg (16.31 KiB) Viewed 13374 times

Peptides, a form of ligand, are tiny bits of protein that are produced throughout the body. They are found in hormones such as endorphins, serotonin, and insulin, for example, and are key elements for life. Neuropeptides pave the way between the brain (i.e. our emotions) and the body.

When a thought triggers an emotion, neuropeptides transmit those feelings through neuropathways and extracellular fluid. Eventually these peptides will connect with cellular receptors throughout the body where they will have an impact on the functioning of body systems at all levels.

T
he late Candace Pert, author of Molecules of Emotion and one of the pioneers of psychoneuroimmunology, states:

“…the chemicals that are running our body and our brain are the same chemicals that are involved in emotion.”
How Your Emotions Affect Your Body

Here are just a few ways in which specific emotions affect specific bodily functions:

A University of Arizona study found that expressing affectionate feelings towards your loved ones can lower cholesterol;

A study published in the International Journal of Psychophysiology discovered that when subjects simply recalled the situation that had been the initial cause of stress, their blood pressure rates raised significantly. Another study at the University of Maryland Medical Centre found that just the anticipation of laughter began to reduce the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline.(see the laughter posts on this site which have been really well used by our members and friends of cansurvivors)

A study at Loma Linda University in California found that when individuals laughed at a funny movie, the levels of beta-endorphins, responsible for mood elevation, rose as well. In addition, Human Growth Hormone, which aids in sleep and contributes to cellular repair, rose by 87%.

Re: Depression: A revolution in treatment?

PostPosted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 9:05 am
by Alizeh
I have gone through this bbc article and its an eye opener. Depression exist without you knowing it, even denying it. It is not an illusion. You don’t even know you’re in it. It takes awhile before you realize it.

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Re: Depression: A revolution in treatment?

PostPosted: Thu Apr 05, 2018 2:34 pm
by Stifiejohn
Very informative post :D