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Influence of a "Warm Touch" Support Enhancement Intervention Among Married Couples on Ambulatory Blood Pressure, Oxytocin, Alpha Amylase, and Cortisol
Abstract
To investigate whether a support intervention (warm touch enhancement) influences physiological stress systems that are linked to important health outcomes. Growing evidence points to a protective effect of social and emotional support on both morbidity and mortality.
In this study, 34 healthy married couples (n = 68), aged 20 to 39 years (mean = 25.2 years), were randomly assigned to a "behavior monitoring" control group or participated in a 4-week intervention study in which clinic levels of plasma oxytocin, 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure, and salivary cortisol and alpha amylase were obtained pre and post intervention, at the same time salivary oxytocin was taken at home during weeks 1 and 4.
Salivary oxytocin was enhanced both early and late in the intervention group and alpha amylase was reduced at post treatment in intervention group husbands and wives relative to controls. Husbands in the intervention group had significantly lower post treatment 24-hour systolic blood pressure than the control group.
Increasing warm touch among couples has a beneficial influence on multiple stress-sensitive systems.
... Our findings complement and extend past research on the effects of affectionate touch on stress responses in the laboratory [4,29] and in daily life [6]. We found smaller CARs were associated with more social interactions with hugging the day before, but there was no evidence of an association with a person's average levels of social interactions with hugging for the duration of the study. ...
... Although the focus of the current study was hugging, a review of the literature suggests that multiple acts of affectionate touch may influence stress responsive systems. For example, affectionate touch in romantic couples, including massages, may downregulate multiple stress systems [29]. While there is some precedence for using hugs specifically as an easily reported measure of affectionate touch [34], future studies should allow for reports of all affectionate touch behaviors, which may vary between people and in the context of different social relationships. ...
Previous research suggests that affectionate touch such as hugs might downregulate stress systems such as the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis. However, the current literature lacks in generalizability beyond the laboratory setting and outside the context of romantic relationships. The cortisol awakening response (CAR) is a measure of the HPA axis and is responsive to daily fluctuations in stress and social information. However, associations between affectionate touch and the CAR have never been assessed. This study used ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to measure daily hugging behaviors in 104 first-year college students and salivary cortisol to assess the CAR. Participants who reported more daily hugs in their social interactions had significantly smaller CARs the next morning compared to days they reported fewer hugs. This study contributes to the literature on social interactions and stress responsive systems and emphasizes the importance of assessing affectionate touch behaviors such as hugs that can be exchanged outside the context of romantic relationships.
... The problem, of course, is that many of the affiliative behaviors studied, such as grooming, inherently involve several behaviors that have been shown to independently increase oxytocin: social connection, physical stimulation, and visual coordination. In humans, affiliative touch between couples increases oxytocin (Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008;Light et al., 2005), but so do massages from a stranger (Morhenn et al., 2012). Moreover, not all of these are social; even passive physical contact is associated with increased oxytocin in both humans and nonhuman primates (Jablonski, 2021). ...
... These results are particularly intriguing in light of previous literature that has begun to suggest that touch is important, above and beyond any social components. Previous research in humans focused on social touch, finding that massage and even passive physical contact with another individual increases oxytocin Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008;Morhenn et al., 2012), and in rats, plasma oxytocin levels increased after physical stroking in rodents by an experimenter, despite the fact that this stroking was provided by a heterospecific (Stock & Uvnäs-Moberg, 1988). Even when social context is further removed, physical stimulation that resembled licking and grooming, but was performed using a cotton ball, increased oxytocin expression and activation in mice (Yu et al., 2022). ...
Social interactions induce oxytocin release in many social species, suggesting that oxytocin is a critical part of social bonding among individuals. However, oxytocin also increases as a result of physical contact and stimulation, making it unclear which features of affiliative behaviors (for instance, social interaction or physical contact with a conspecific) drive the oxytocin increase observed after engaging in these behaviors. We attempted to tease this apart by studying the differential effect of social interaction, visual coordination with a conspecific, and physical stimulation during the fur-rubbing behavior of tufted capuchin monkeys (Sapajus [Cebus] apella), which often involves social contact with groupmates but is in some cases performed alone. We induced fur-rubbing by providing onions under three conditions: when capuchins had physical access to their social group and fur-rubbed in contact with groupmates (social condition), when capuchins were separated from their social group but could still see them fur-rub (visual coordination), and when capuchins were physically and visually separated from their groupmates (physical stimulation only). We assessed urinary oxytocin in these three conditions and compared them to a control condition in which apples were provided and no fur-rubbing was observed. Capuchins fur-rubbed for less time when they could not see their groupmates, but fur-rubbing increased urinary oxytocin above the control condition in all three fur-rubbing conditions equally, suggesting that the physical stimulation derived from fur-rubbing was the most important driver of oxytocin increase. These results support a model in which physical stimulation is an important factor in the relationship between oxytocin and at least some behaviors, suggesting that oxytocin increase alone is not necessarily indicative of a social influence on behavior. Future work is needed to determine the contexts in which social factors do impact oxytocin, and whether the downstream behaviors are the same for socially and nonsocially induced oxytocin release.
... This has shown positive affective valence by stimulating especially C-tactile afferents in the skin, leading to increased vagal activity that may mediate the positive effects of touch (29,30). Psychological effects of touch are shown in improved emotion regulation and attentiveness as well as decreased stress, depression, and anxiety levels (30,31). The effects of massage therapy have been the subject of many studies, proposing stress relief and effects on symptoms through physiologic and psychological mechanisms, such as improvement in hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) axis function, reduction in heart rate, and increase in blood flow as underlying mechanisms (32), resulting in beneficial effects on various health conditions (9). ...
... The results on the effects of EAAM in this review suggest various health promoting effects, and therefore, match the findings on the health promoting capacities of the application of warmth and substances (14,(16)(17)(18)(21)(22)(23)(24) as well as on touch and massage (9,30,31). The importance given to rhythmical stroking in massages matches the findings on the impact of a certain pace and pressure to stimulate especially C-tactile afferents in the skin to reach a positive effect and affective value (29). ...
Introduction
External applications from anthroposophic medicine (EAAM) are touch-based applications such as rhythmical massages, embrocations, and compresses that serve as components of complementary treatment concepts for various diseases. The aim of this review is to gain an understanding of typical indications and outcomes and to systematically assess the effectiveness and safety of EAAM.
Materials and methods
Medline/PubMed, CINAHL, the Cochrane Library, Embase, and PsycINFO were searched through May 2021 and supplemented by searches in specialized databases and personal requests to experts in the field. Studies and case reports on EAAM in patients, as well as healthy individuals, were included in the qualitative synthesis. Outcome parameters depending on each study were grouped as effect themes and assigned to study clusters using Thematic Analysis for a thematic overview of effect patterns.
Results
Four RCTs, 7 cohort studies, 1 mixed-methods, 1 retrospective, 4 qualitative studies, 3 case series, and 25 case reports on EAAM were identified. The analysis indicated various effects of EAAM on physiological as well as psychological health indicators and patterns of effect development. Study quality was found to be high for only 2 studies, and moderate for 1 study, and all remaining 45 studies showed a moderate or high risk of bias or were not ratable with used rating tools.
Conclusion
The included studies present a wide range of potential indications for EAAM, while showing methodological drawbacks. To determine whether EAAM can be considered an effective treatment option, clinical studies exploring the effect of different EAAM modalities on defined patient groups are recommended for the future.
Systematic review registration
[ https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=214030 ], identifier [CRD42020214030].
... Not surprisingly, given the effects of social touch and affiliative reward on endogenous opiates, oxytocin, and autonomic nervous system responding (reviewed below), physical affection is associated generally with more favorable indicators, and multiple studies document direct relationships between touch with a relational partner and physical symptom reports Social Touch and Resilience 135 or cardiovascular, neuroendocrine, and/or immune system biomarkers. Physical contact in these studies included: neck and shoulder massage (Ditzen et al., 2007;Holt-Lunstad, Birmingham, & Light, 2008); kissing (Floyd et al., 2009;Kimata, 2003Kimata, , 2006Matsunaga et al., 2009); physical intimacy, either undefined (Stadler, Snyder, Horn, Shrout, & Bolger, 2012), or defined as holding hands, touching, hugging, kissing, or sexual interaction (Ditzen, Hoppmann, & Klumb, 2008); and nonverbal affection (Floyd et al., 2007). ...
... Blood oxytocin level partially mediated a relationship between reported typical frequency of spousal hugging and baseline blood pressure . Further, Holt-Lunstad and colleagues found that an experimental manipulation to increase daily positive physical contact over four weeks increased salivary oxytocin compared to the control group (Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008). Single short-term touch interventions, however, may be insufficient to raise oxytocin-in one experiment where women in the treatment group received neck and shoulder massages from their husbands, peripheral oxytocin levels did not differ between the groups (Ditzen et al., 2007). ...
Resilience is the process by which individuals adapt successfully to acute or chronic challenge and adversity (see Preface, this volume). Initially studied in developmental contexts, it is now a focus in adult psychology, where it vies with risk-based models to explain behavior and health-related outcomes. Resilience researchers ask “Why are most people able to overcome trauma or misfortune, even to thrive in their wake, whereas others are critically damaged by these experiences?” Some answers to this question suggest a powerful resiliencepromoting role for interpersonal relationships and social connection (Cacioppo, Reis, & Zautra, 2011). As noted by Berkman and colleagues, relationships influence well-being by providing opportunities for social integration and engagement, giving and receiving social support, influencing and being influenced by others, experiencing positive and negative social interactions, and feeling companionship or loneliness (Berkman, Glass, Brissette, & Seeman, 2000). Relationships also provide opportunities for interpersonal touch, particularly physical affection.
... Therefore, whether mindfulness-based stress interventions can reduce cortisol levels remains unclear. Holt-Lunstad et al. (2008) examined whether a support enhancement intervention could decrease salivary cortisol as an indicator of improved mood, with a behaviour monitoring control group where participants were instructed to just keep a diary of their physical affection and mood. Stress, mood, or social support were not measured. ...
... Out of the 27 trials, less than half (n = 12) hypothesised the direction of the effect on cortisol, only half of these (n = 6) reported findings that were in line with their hypotheses (Bergen-Cico et al., 2014;Daubenmier et al., 2011;Goldberg et al., 2014;Miller et al., 2015); reductions during the evening cortisol (Papacosta et al., 2013;Sannes et al., 2015). The other six studies, which did hypothesise a direction either did not find a significant intervention effect on cortisol (Diment et al., 2012;Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008;P. J. Chen et al., 2017;Leivadi et al., 1999;K. ...
Objectives: To critically review evidence for associations between long-term cortisol levels, mood, and lifestyle factors.Systematic searches of electronic databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, WoS, and CINAHL) were conducted up to 21/11/2020 to identify observational and interventional studies (n = 4971) reporting associations between one or more lifestyle or mood factor with cortisol outcomes measured over ≥4 weeks in healthy adults. Quality of included studies was assessed using Downs and Black checklist. The quality of evidence supporting the associations of lifestyle and mood with long-term cortisol levels was assessed as being of moderate-to-poor quality. Observational studies (n = 25) indicated positive associations for BMI/body weight (ESr, pooled effect size correlation = 0.15, p<.001), physical activity (ESr=0.16, p<.001), perceived stress (ESr=0.114, p = .02), and depression (ESr = 0.133, p = .02), but not stressors (ESr = 0.06, p = .29), anxiety (ESr = 0.08, p = .14), or specific features of stress (ESr = 0.25, p = .10). There was insufficient evidence to reliably estimate associations between long-term cortisol levels and sleep, smoking, alcohol consumption, caffeine consumption, and PTSD. Findings from interventional studies (n = 27) were mixed and did not always support the relationships found in observational studies. The findings of this review were limited by the quality of the evidence. Current evidence for associations between mood and lifestyle factors with long-term levels of cortisol is mixed. For many factors, there was considerable uncertainty regarding the size of association with long-term cortisol due to a paucity of evidence. Future research should aim to (1) follow more consistent sampling protocols between studies and (2) clearly describe the hypothesised mechanisms through which interventions would affect cortisol levels.
... Touch is central to affect regulation and distress mitigation, not only between infants and caregivers (Cascio et al., 2019;Waters et al., 2014) but also in adult relationships Jakubiak & Feeney, 2017). As with sleep, these effects potentially occur indirectly by enhancing regulatory capacity and directly via neural/physiological processes (Coan et al., 2006;Ditzen et al., 2007;Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008). In couples, affect regulation and touch can have synergistic effects and reciprocal associations with relationship satisfaction. ...
... While transitioning to sleep, partner presence may enhance feelings of safety and security (Troxel et al., 2007). Touch may facilitate falling and staying asleep by conveying intimacy/relationship reassurance (Rosenblatt, 2006) or embodying the presence of available social resources (Beckes et al., 2015), or even directly via arousal reduction (Ditzen et al., 2019;Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008). Like non-sleep-related touch, sleep-touch may alter physiological processes such as greater heart rate variability (Triscoli et al., 2017) that augment affect regulatory or resetting functions of sleep-which in itself is associated with such physiological changes (e.g., Stein & Pu, 2012). ...
Touch associated with sleep (sleep-touch; reported physical contact during or shortly before/after sleep) is underexplored as a distinct contributor to affect regulatory processes associated with adult sleep. Given the affect-regulating effects of interpersonal touch, we theorized that among healthy co-sleeping adults, sleep-touch would add to sleep-related effects on affective “resetting,” resulting in the experience of calmer, more regulated states. We studied 210 married heterosexual couples (aged 20–67 years, 79% non-Hispanic white, 13% Latinx) assigned 14 days of twice-daily (morning/evening) sleep/mood diaries. Multilevel daily (within-couple) mediation analyses showed that as hypothesized, more reported sleep-touch was associated with happier/calmer and less angry/irritable morning mood. In turn, happier/calmer mood was associated with greater enjoyment of time with spouse (for both spouses). Sleep-touch also was linked directly to both evening positive spousal events and enjoyment ratings. Sleep-touch was associated indirectly with fewer negative spousal events and less spouse-related stress via less angry/irritable morning mood (both spouses). Further, wives’ sleep-touch was related to happier/calmer husband mood and evening enjoyment; husbands’ sleep-touch was unrelated to wives’ reports. All associations with sleep-touch were present while accounting for subjective sleep quality, prior evening mood, non-sleep-related physical affection, day in study, and weekend versus weekday. We speculate that among relatively healthy satisfied couples, physical touch during and surrounding sleep may add to sleep’s restorative and affect-regulatory functions, suggesting a pathway through which co-sleeping can improve affect regulation and ultimately relationships and health.
... Além disso, pesquisas anteriores sugerem que uma maior frequência de toque está ligada a menores níveis de estresse diário e reatividade a situações estressoras, produzindo declínios significativos nos marcadores fisiológicos de estresse (Ditzen et al. 2008;Robinson et al. 2015, Holt-Lunstad et al. 2008. O estudo também demonstrou que o toque afetivo alivia o estresse objetivo e subjetivo durante as discussões de conflito entre casais, revelando o poder comunicativo: o toque não apenas viabiliza uma garantia de que alguém está disponível para fornecer ajuda durante um estressor individual, mas também garante segurança durante os estressores interpessoais. ...
This article presents definitions of what touch is and its implications for human well-being / satisfaction with life. Measurable variables were considered, such as the frequency of interpersonal touch, perceived stress (PSS-14), familism, level of proximity (IOS), feelings of rejection / void (JGSL) and level of satisfaction with the relationship (PRQC). The sample here consists of 291 people, both genders. The used questionnaires were applied to a Brazilian sample, electronically and in paper. The data obtained suggests a weak relationship between touch and well-being / satisfaction with life, possibly due to a ceiling effect. This contrasts with the same skin to skin study carried out in other countries; demonstrating that the cultural factor is of great relevance. In addition, there was a significant correlation indicating that the greater the feeling of rejection / emptiness the subject feels, the lower the well-being / satisfaction with life. Moreover, there is a correlation between the act of touch practiced by participants and their respective levels of satisfaction with the relationship, influencing their well-being.
... Various studies suggest that tactile massage or stimuli can trigger an increase in endogenous oxytocin in various body fluids, including blood, saliva, and urine (Crockford et al., 2013;Holt-Lunstad, Birmingham, & Light, 2008;La Leche League International, 2003;Light, Grewen, & Amico, 2005;Matthiesen, Ransjö-Arvidson, Nissen, & Uvnäs-Moberg, 2001). Maternal oxytocin will increase when a breastfed infant touches (hand massage) the breast. ...
Exclusive breastfeeding is essential for human infants' physical and mental development. However, breastfeeding problems can hamper this low quantity of breast milk. This study aimed to evaluate the benefits of Marmet breast massage for increasing the amount of breast milk in post-partum mothers. This is an experimental study design. The subjects of 100 breastfeeding mothers were randomly assigned to two groups; a control group (which received standard breast care massage) and the treatment group (who received the Marmet technique breast massage). Although there were no significant differences in the rate of change over time between the Marmet technique group and the control group (p-value>0.05), there was an increase in breastfeeding fluency scores in the Marmet technique group. The Marmet breast massage technique increased milk production in term infants at a rate comparable to usual breast massage. Therefore, this technique could be used to improve exclusive breastfeeding rates, including for mothers with nipple abnormalities.
... In addition to these relational benefits, participants assigned to the intervention also reported reductions in cholesterol, suggesting additional health benefits. Similarly, an intervention designed to increase affectionate touch was associated with increases in oxytocin and decreases in α-amylase (a marker of daily stress) among men and women, as well as blood pressure reductions among men (Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008). It is important to note, however, that these interventions only included heterosexual couples, limiting understanding of whether such interventions would be effective for sexual minority couples. ...
Internalized heterosexism has been linked to poor relationship outcomes among sexual minority individuals. However, there is a dearth of research examining how internalized heterosexism is associated with intimate behaviors, such as verbal intimacy and affectionate touch. Furthermore, there are no studies that utilize behavioral observation to examine these associations in contexts expected to pull for intimate behaviors, such as a positive relationship discussion. Using a multimethod approach, we investigated associations between self-reported internalized heterosexism and observed intimate behaviors during a positive relationship discussion using data of 72 sexual minority couples. We hypothesized that internalized heterosexism would be related to lower engagement in intimate behaviors. Bivariate intraclass correlations confirmed that internalized heterosexism was negatively associated with couple-level verbal intimacy and individual-level affectionate touch provision. Results of multiple linear regression indicated that internalized heterosexism accounted for a significant portion of variance in verbal intimacy displayed by couples. In addition, we found a statistically significant actor effect of internalized heterosexism on affectionate touch provision using an actor–partner interdependence model. Specifically, participants with higher internalized heterosexism provided their partner with less affectionate touch than those with lower internalized heterosexism. Our findings suggest that clinicians working with sexual minority couples presenting with intimacy-related problems should consider assessing internalized heterosexism to better inform case conceptualization and treatment planning.
... Some studies have reported changes in neuroendocrine systems: cortisol levels are increased after loss and the diurnal profile fluctuates less in people with prolonged grief disorder (34). Social touch is well known to have a stress-buffering effect, to reduce cortisol and heart-rate (35), and to evoke oxytocin-release (36,37). It has furthermore been shown that touch-deprivation is associated with increased amounts of anxiety and loneliness in times of stress (38,39). ...
In the present original online study, we examined a largely neglected area of research in psychology: grief, its bodily sensations, and social touch as means of consolation in times of grief.
... Consistently with previous studies, we found that tactile support from a romantic partner significantly reduced pain perception both at the subjective (Coan et al., 2006;Floyd et al., 2018;Goldstein et al., 2018;Kreuder et al., 2019;von Mohr et al., 2018) and physiological level (Che et al., 2021;Goldstein et al., 2017;Reddan et al., 2020), thus confirming previous observations reporting the efficacy of this type of support in alleviating sufferance during painful experiences. Manifestations of affection (i.e., social touch, warm caresses, handholding, hugs) represent a fundamental aspect of intimate interpersonal interactions, and several studies have investigated their direct and indirect association with oxytocin release (Grewen et al., 2005;Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008;Kreuder et al., 2019). Specifically, social touch has been proven to elicit oxytocin release in rodents (Tang et al., 2020;Yu et al., 2022) and non-human primates (Gothard & Fuglevand, 2022), and to increase endogenous levels of oxytocin in humans (Handlin et al., 2022). ...
As social animals, humans are strongly affected by social bonds and interpersonal interactions. Proximity and social support from significant others may buffer the negative outcomes of a painful experience. Several studies have investigated the role of romantic partners' support in pain modulation, mostly focusing on tactile support and showing its effectiveness in reducing pain perception. Nevertheless, no study so far has investigated the role of supportive speaking on pain modulation, nor has compared the effects of a tactile and vocal support within the same couples. The present study directly compared for the first time the efficacy of mere presence (Passive Support) and different forms of active (Touch, Voice, Touch + Voice) support from a romantic partner during a painful experience in a naturalistic setting. We assessed pain modulation in 37 romantic couples via both subjective (self-reported ratings) and physiological (skin conductance) measurements. We found that all three types of active support were equally more effective than passive support in reducing the painful experience at both subjective and physiological levels; interestingly, our results suggest that supportive speaking can reduce pain perception with respect to passive support to a similar extent as tactile support does. Overall, this study highlights the relevance of an active support in reducing pain perception, with active types of support being more effective than passive support, regardless of its specific modality.
... Experimental research indicates that affectionate touch reduces state anxiety among patients in critical care wards [40], people prompted to think about their death [41], and individuals under threat of an electric shock [42]. Longitudinal interventions that increase interpersonal touch between romantic partners lead to significant declines in both physiological and self-reported stress [43,44]. Beyond human touch, research shows that engaging in experiences that simulate affectionate human tactile experiences, such as petting animals [45], touching soft objects (e.g., a teddy bear) [41], feeling a weighted blanket [46], and being touched by robots [47], can significantly reduce stress and anxiety. ...
Decades of evidence reveal intimate links between sensation and emotion. Yet, discussion of sensory experiences as tools that promote emotion regulation is largely absent from current theorizing on this topic. Here, we address this gap by integrating evidence from social-personality, clinical, cognitive-neuroscience, and animal research to highlight the role of sensation as a tool that can be harnessed to up- or downregulate emotion. Further, we review evidence implicating sensation as a rapid and relatively effortless emotion regulation modality and highlight future research directions. Notably, we emphasize the need to examine the duration of sensory emotion regulation effects, the moderating role of individual and cultural differences, and how sensory strategies interact with other strategies.
... The most widely used form of ambulatory assessment among psychologists studying everyday stress and health has been ambulatory blood pressure, which has been used to understand stress-relevant effects of marital interactions [25]- [28], broader peer and social interactions [29]- [32], and daily experiences of stress, stigma, discrimination, or social support [33]- [36]. Although blood pressure is a highly healthrelevant outcome, it provides relatively limited information Screenshot of the IoT server measuring subject's stress while exposed to virtual reality high heights during the plank walk. ...
Objective: Modern lifestyles are triggering stress at a disproportionate rate for longer periods of time. Chronic or long-lasting stress can pose a risk to our health. Despite advances in physiological recording methods, mental stress remains challenging to quantify and monitor. Methods: We describe an Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) device with electrocardiogram (ECG) recording features. The recorded ECG signal is processed on-the-fly to calculate, in real time, heart rate, heart rate variability, energy expenditure and mental stress. Data are sent to an online platform using a standard Internet of Things (IoT) publish-subscribe messaging transport protocol for continuous monitoring. Results: The system functionality is first validated by performing hardware-in-the-loop measurements connected to a patient simulator. We then monitored induced stress by recording ECG in subjects using liquid metal electrodes performing a plank walking task in a virtual reality (VR) environment with high heights exposure. The results demonstrate our IoMT system’s ability to provide accurate ECG metrics using novel liquid metal electrodes by detecting continuously increased stress values in a VR setting and at-home. Conclusion: The IoMT measurement device presented provides a novel strategy for monitoring stress in real time. Significance: Our work provides the opportunity for future research on psychological stress and emotion regulation within daily life and the physiological mechanisms through which it influences the health of both children and adults.
... A hug is a natural embrace and one of the most common forms of social interaction in humans and animals. Beyond a simple salutation, it is an effective means to communicate affection and emotional support [1], and studies have shown hugging to cause physiological responses, thereby resulting in cardiovascular and mental health benefits [2], [3], [4]. With the advent of social robotics, e.g., robots in malls, homes, and theme parks, there is an increasing need for methods that can produce responsive and convincing hugging motions in anthropomorphic agents. ...
We introduce an imitation learning-based physical human-robot interaction algorithm capable of predicting appropriate robot responses in complex interactions involving a superposition of multiple interactions. Our proposed algorithm, Blending Bayesian Interaction Primitives (B-BIP) allows us to achieve responsive interactions in complex hugging scenarios, capable of reciprocating and adapting to a hugs motion and timing. We show that this algorithm is a generalization of prior work, for which the original formulation reduces to the particular case of a single interaction, and evaluate our method through both an extensive user study and empirical experiments. Our algorithm yields significantly better quantitative prediction error and more-favorable participant responses with respect to accuracy, responsiveness, and timing, when compared to existing state-of-the-art methods.
... In humans, both post-partum mothers and their infants have increased peripheral oxytocin concentrations during skin-to-skin contact, such as would occur during Kangaroo care (Matthiesen et al., 2001;Uvnäs-Moberg and Petersson, 2010;Uvnäs-Moberg et al., 2015) and this may serve to reduce stress and facilitate mutual bonding between mother and infant (Uvnäs-Moberg and Petersson, 2010). "Warm touch" between couples and affectionate touch during early stage of romantic relationships also increases peripheral oxytocin concentrations (Light et al., 2005;Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008;Schneiderman et al., 2012). Slow, moderate pressure massage in adult humans facilitates peripheral oxytocin release (Morhenn et al., 2012;Li et al., 2019), and foot massage administered by hand, but not by machine, increases activity in key brain regions involved in pleasurable (orbitofrontal cortex) and social cognition (superior temporal sulcus) aspects of affective touch, although not in the somatosensory cortex (Li et al., 2019). ...
Touch represents one of our most important senses throughout life and particularly in the context of our social and emotional experiences. In this review, we draw on research on touch processing from both animal models and humans. Firstly, we briefly describe the cutaneous touch receptors and neural processing of both affective and discriminative touch. We then outline how our sense of touch develops and summarize increasing evidence demonstrating how essential early tactile stimulation is for the development of brain and behavior, with a particular focus on effects of tactile stimulation in infant animals and pediatric massage and Kangaroo care in human infants. Next, the potential mechanisms whereby early tactile stimulation influences both brain and behavioral development are discussed, focusing on its ability to promote neural plasticity changes and brain interhemispheric communication, development of social behavior and bonding, and reward sensitivity through modulation of growth factor, oxytocin, and opioid signaling. Finally, we consider the implications of evidence for atypical responses to touch in neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder and discuss existing evidence and future priorities for establishing potential beneficial effects of interventions using massage or pharmacological treatments targeting oxytocin or other neurochemical systems.
... Similarly, couples engaged in a programme of affiliative touch over 4 weeks resulted in higher post-treatment salivary OXT concentrations than couples in the non-intervention group (Ref. 160). After these studies, other authors have also reported similar OXT-related effects in different positive social environments (Refs 161,162). ...
Immune system aging, a process known as immunosenescence, involves a striking rearrangement affecting all immune cells, resulting in an increased rate of infections and a major incidence of autoimmune diseases and cancer. Nonetheless, differences in how individuals of the same chronological age carry out this immunosenescence establishment and thus the aging rate have been reported. In the context of neuroimmunoendocrine communication and its role in the response to stress situations, growing evidence suggests that social environments profoundly influence all physiological responses, especially those linked to immunity. Accordingly, negative contexts (loneliness in humans/social isolation in rodents) were associated with immune impairments and decreased lifespan. However, positive social environments have been correlated with adequate immunity and increased lifespan. Therefore, the social context in which an individual lives is proposed as a decisive modulator of the immunosenescence process and, consequently, of the rate of aging. In this review, the most important findings regarding how different social environments (negative and positive) modulate immunosenescence and therefore the aging rate, as well as the role of stress responses, hormesis, and resilience in these environments will be explained. Finally, several possible molecular mechanisms underlying the effects of negative and positive environments on immunosenescence will be suggested.
... Additionally, oxytocin, the neuropeptide produced by the hypothalamus and released by the posterior pituitary, has been linked with social interaction, bonding, and wellbeing (Beetz et al., 2012a;Olff et al., 2013). Oxytocin has been found to be increased with warm touch (Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008). It has also been identified as key in the regulation of complex social behaviors such as attachment and social support-seeking behaviors (Cochran et al., 2013;Thomas and Larkin, 2018). ...
While the symbiotic nature of human-dog relationships and perceived benefits to human health have attracted much scientific interest, the mechanisms through which human-dog interactions may confer health benefits to humans are still poorly understood. The aim of this systematic literature review was to synthesize evidence of physiological changes associated with human-dog interactions with relevance to human health. Electronic databases were systematically searched (PubMed, MEDLINE with full text, Scopus, PsycINFO, CINAHL Plus with Full Text, and Web of Science Core Collection) for relevant studies. Of the 13,072 studies identified, 129 met the inclusion criteria, with approximately half being randomized trials (Level 2) based on the Oxford Centre for Evidence Based Medicine level system. Measures employed to study human physiological changes associated with human-dog interactions most commonly involved cardiac parameters and hormones, with negligible research of brain activity. The main positive findings were increases in heart rate variability and oxytocin, and decreases in cortisol with human-dog interactions. These physiological indicators are consistent with activation of the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) and oxytocinergic system (OTS), and down-regulation of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity. These results provide evidence of specific pathways through which human-dog contact may confer health benefits, likely through relaxation, bonding, and stress reduction. However, these findings should be interpreted contextually due to limitations and methodological differences. Previous research using other biological variables was limited in quantity and quality, thus impeding firm conclusions on other possible mechanisms. Further research is needed in some psychophysiological domains, particularly electroencephalography, to better understand central nervous system (CNS) effects. The findings of this review have implications for human-dog interactions to positively affect several stress-sensitive physiological pathways and thus confer health benefits. This supports their incorporation in various clinical, non-clinical, and research settings to develop evidence-based interventions and practices for cost-effective and efficacious ways to improve human health.
... Being touched also has significant positive effects on altruism (Guéguen & Fischer-Lokou, 2003), social connection (Koole et al., 2014), affect (Peláez-Nogueras et al., 1997), and attachment (Jakubiak & Feeney, 2016), and promotes the release of oxytocin and endogenous opioids (Holt-Lunstad, Birmingham, & Light, 2008;Jakubiak & Feeney, 2017). In the field of nursing studies, touch is often considered an aid to therapeutic engagement (Playfair, 2009) which can be used to communicate support. ...
Loneliness is an increasingly ubiquitous topic in academic, policy, and healthcare domains. This work typically focuses on its negative physical and mental health consequences, generally employing a singular cognitive definition of loneliness. In doing so, one central aspect of our social world has been neglected in loneliness research and policy: touch. Touch is a fundamental human behaviour and a powerful form of communication which plays a role in physical and psychological wellbeing. This narrative review outlines a conceptual basis upon which to consider the relationship between loneliness and social touch and reviews the available research examining this connection. There are strong indications that these social phenomena can interact in a variety of ways and this review argues that elements of presence, absence, and type of touch may impact upon loneliness experiences. Additionally, this review considers the challenges inherent to researching touch and loneliness, reflecting on their sensitive and subjective nature. The increasing relevance of the touch–loneliness connection is described in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and recommendations are given for research, policy, and practice. This review proposes that touch should be a key topic for investigation in loneliness research and outlines the potentially invaluable role of touch in understanding loneliness.
... Massage in humans not only increases well-being and happiness, but also reduces stress and anxiety in people with different ailments (Braun et al., 2012;Lindgren et al., 2013;Anderson et al., 2015;Tabatabaee et al., 2016). Salivary alpha amylase, a biomarker for stress-related changes in the body that reflect activity of the sympathetic nervous system, and systolic blood pressure were both reduced in married couples that communicated using increased warm touch (Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008). Massage therapy can also reduce blood pressure, and heart rate (Moyer et al., 2004). ...
Social touch can act as a stress buffer, reducing behavioral and physiological responses to stressful scenarios. However, the skin-brain mechanosensory pathways that promote stress resilience remain unknown. In this thesis, I investigated how Mrgprb4-lineage touch neurons in the skin of mice play a role in this soothing skin-brain circuit. Early life ablation and activation of Mrgprb4-lineage neurons did not impact pup ultrasonic vocalizations, a measurement of postnatal stress. However, I found that mice with an early life genetic ablation of Mrgprb4-lineage touch neurons display behaviors that suggest vulnerability to stress in adulthood. Chemogenetic activation of the Mrgprb4-lineage touch neurons with whole brain activity mapping with c-Fos, uncovered distinct activity patterns in brain areas relevant to somatosensation, reward, and affect. Optogenetic activation of these neurons also promoted a conditioned place preference in female mice. Lasty, attempting to rescue deficits brought on by stress, we chemogenetically activated Mrgprb4-lineage neurons in adulthood and observed a reduction in corticosterone under mild acute stress conditions. Together, these studies reveal that Mrgprb4-lineage sensory neurons in the skin engage networks across the brain as part of a skin-brain pathway for stress resilience in mice.
... In older couples, Pauly et al. [28] demonstrated that this synchrony increased with positive partner interactions. By means of a support intervention, Holt-Lunstad et al. [29] reported beneficial effects on sCort and sAA in daily life in couples. ...
Background:
Research concerning people living with dementia (PwD) and their informal caregivers (ICs) has recently begun to focus on dyadic aspects of psychosocial interventions.
Objective:
We adapted a dyadic psychosocial intervention and examined its effects on psychobiological stress in daily life.
Methods:
Twenty-four PwD-caregiver dyads were visited seven times at home by specialized nursing staff. Momentary subjective stress, salivary cortisol (sCort), and salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) were measured in PwD and ICs before and after each home visit as well as six times per day at two days each at the beginning and end of the intervention as part of an ambulatory assessment. Hair cortisol concentrations (HCC) were measured twice.
Results:
After each home visit session, ICs reported lower subjective stress. sCort was lower in both ICs and PwD, whereas sAA did not change. In daily life, area under the curve (AUCg) concerning sCort secretion indicated that PwD had lower sCort daily output at the end of the intervention, and AUCg concerning subjective stress indicated that both PwD and ICs reported lower subjective stress than at the beginning of the intervention. AUCg concerning sAA did not change over time in either group. HCC did not vary over time but increased with disease severity.
Conclusion:
The psychosocial intervention reduced psychobiological stress but affected psychobiological stress measures differently in PwD and ICs. In particular, the discrepancy between subjective and physiological markers of stress in PwD emphasizes the added value to evaluate treatment success and understand underlying mechanisms as a complement to self-reports.
... Touch is a powerful and intuitive sense. Non-noxious touch in the right context can lower physiological stress markers such as heart rate, blood pressure and cortisol levels, enhance heart rate variability, and increase levels of oxytocin, serotonin and dopamine associated with positive mood and well-being, reducing the sympathetic nervous activity associated with stress and anxiety [10][11][12][13][14][15]. As humans, we have functionally specialized nerve fibers (CT afferents) that respond to gentle, warm, caresslike touch with positive affective and physiological implications [16]. ...
Anxiety disorders affect approximately one third of people during their lifetimes and are the ninth leading cause of global disability. Current treatments focus on therapy and pharmacological interventions. However, therapy is costly and pharmacological interventions often have undesirable side-effects. Healthy people also regularly suffer periods of anxiety. Therefore, a non-pharmacological, intuitive, home intervention would be complementary to other treatments and beneficial for non-clinical groups. Existing at-home anxiety aids, such as guided meditations, typically employ visual and/or audio stimuli to guide the user into a calmer state. However, the tactile sense has the potential to be a more natural modality to target in an anxiety-calming device. The tactile domain is relatively under-explored, but we suggest that there are manifold physiological and affective qualities of touch that lend it to the task. In this study we demonstrate that haptic technology can offer an enjoyable, effective and widely accessible alternative for easing state anxiety. We describe a novel huggable haptic interface that pneumatically simulates slow breathing. We discuss the development of this interface through a focus group evaluating five prototypes with embedded behaviours (‘breathing’, ‘purring’, ‘heartbeat’ and ‘illumination’). Ratings indicated that the ‘breathing’ prototype was most pleasant to interact with and participants described this prototype as ‘calming’ and ‘soothing’, reminding them of a person breathing. This prototype was developed into an ergonomic huggable cushion containing a pneumatic chamber powered by an external pump allowing the cushion to ‘breathe’. A mixed-design experiment (n = 129) inducing anxiety through a group mathematics test found that the device was effective at reducing pre-test anxiety compared to a control (no intervention) condition and that this reduction in anxiety was indistinguishable from that of a guided meditation. Our findings highlight the efficacy of this interface, demonstrating that haptic technologies can be effective at easing anxiety. We suggest that the field should be explored in more depth to capture the nuances of different modalities in relation to specific situations and trait characteristics.
... It has been suggested that moderate digital pressurebased manual therapy applied to the cervical region is effective in FMS patients [34]. In their randomized controlled trial, Nadal-Nicolas et al. [35] used this approach in FMS patients for 8 sessions over 4 weeks. ...
Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is a chronic rheumatic disease in which pain is predominant and accompanied by fatigue, anxiety, depression, sleep disturbance and cognitive dysfunction. Although there are numerous pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapeutic alternatives, symptom control is frequently problematic. Manual therapy covers manipulating soft tissue and various joints using the hands. It is organized by mapping of soft tissue structures with rhythmically applied pressure to improve physical function, facilitate daily activities, promote rehabilitation procedures and decrease pain. Massage is generally accepted as an essential component of manual therapy. Stretching and mobilizations are also part of manual therapy. Although numerous beneficial effects of manual therapy and massage on the musculoskeletal system and pain have been proven, the data in FMS patients studies are inconclusive. We hypothesize that manual therapy and massage are beneficial therapeutic options for the control of symptoms of FMS patients. Furthermore, these strategies can be employed in conjunction with well-established and high-evidence therapeutic procedures. Future research should focus on establishing standardized protocols for manual therapy and massage, which is one of the major limitations. To ensure a high level of evidence, research studies with large sample sizes, long follow-up periods and methodologically complete are needed.
... For example, affectionate touch has been linked with improved mood, less distress, and/or lower perceived stress in multiple daily diary studies (e.g., Burleson et al., 2007;Debrot et al., 2014;Debrot et al., 2020;Murphy et al., 2018), after laboratory stressors (e.g., Jakubiak & Feeney, 2019a;Robinson et al., 2015), and after a 6-week intervention to increase kissing frequency in couples (Floyd et al., 2009). Affectionate touch interventions also can induce physiological changes that indicate more positive affective states or lower stress responses, including reduced threat-associated brain activation (Coan et al., 2006), lower salivary alpha-amylase (Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008), and lower cardiovascular reactivity to stressors (Ditzen et al., 2007). On the other hand, receiving less affectionate touch than desired is linked with individual and relational negative outcomes (e.g., loneliness, relationship dissatisfaction; Floyd, 2014). ...
During the COVID-19 pandemic, physical distancing guidelines were implemented to reduce viral spread, altering typical social interactions and reducing the amount of physical contact and affectionate touch many individuals experienced. The pandemic also caused psychological distress, perhaps in part related to reductions in affectionate touch with close others. We theorized that this would be particularly problematic for individuals reliant on affectionate touch to help regulate their emotions. Using online survey data collected nationwide from married or romantically partnered adults ( N = 585), we examined how physical distancing (moderated by cohabiting with spouse/partner) and affectionate touch with close others (moderated by individual differences in typical use and efficacy of touch for affect regulation [TAR]) related to individual psychological distress and romantic relationship quality. As hypothesized, more physical distancing was associated with less affectionate touch among non-cohabiters, but surprisingly with more touch among cohabiters. Also as hypothesized, participants higher in TAR and experiencing less affectionate touch reported more psychological distress than those similarly high in TAR and experiencing more affectionate touch, or than those lower in TAR. Unexpectedly, more physical distancing was associated directly with lower psychological distress and better relationship quality. Better relationship quality was linked directly to more affectionate touch and greater endorsement of TAR. Thus, for those cohabiting in satisfying romantic relationships, physical distancing may facilitate relationship-positive behaviors. Further, individual differences in TAR may influence the potency of touch effects on mood and stress.
... Further, proximity may be associated with the quality of an interaction where being in close proximity allows for physical exchanges of support, such as a hug or a calming touch. In contrast, preceding, during, and following strained interactions, partners may elect to maintain a distance from each other in order to buffer the negative impact of the interaction (e.g., Ditzen et al., 2019;Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008). ...
Background: Close relationships in older adulthood are characterized by heightened interdependence, which has implications for health and well-being as partners age together. Purpose: We describe a novel method that uses partners’ spatial proximity to examine the dynamics of interpersonal relationships. Research Design: In a sample of 10 older adult couples over a 14-day study period, we linked a continuous measure of partners’ spatial proximity with partners’ heart rates—a physiological marker of arousal. Results: Cross-correlations showed that proximity was consistently associated with each partner’s heart rate, but the magnitude and sequence of the correlation varied from day-to-day, suggesting that the coupling of proximity and heart rate is a dynamic of the interaction, rather than the couple. Additionally, our predictive model showed that all three time-series were necessary for optimal prediction, demonstrating that proximity and partners’ heart rates are dynamically intertwined. Conclusion: Together, these results demonstrate meaningful and predictable variation in couple dynamics at the momentary level that consists of a complex association between physiological and spatial proximity.
... Provision of emotional support is also physiologically beneficial. Holt-Lunstad, Birmingham and Light [21] found emotional support provided through a warm touch intervention was associated with enhanced salivary oxytocin and reduced alpha amylase in both husbands and wives, and with lower systolic blood pressure for husbands. Coan et al. [14] found that emotional support in the form of handholding decreased neural responses to threat. ...
Being satisfied in marriage provides protective stress buffering benefits to various health complications but the causal mechanisms and speed at which this is accomplished is less well understood. Much of the research on health and marriage has conceptualized marital quality in a unidimensional way, with high levels of either positivity or negativity. This conceptualization may not fully capture the nuanced benefits of marital relationships. Pupillometry is an innovative method which captures the effects of marital stress buffering on the body’s autonomic nervous system in real time; pupil dilation occurs within 200ms to stress exposure. Additionally, this method records hundreds of readings per second, providing precision and sensitivity. This preregistered experiment aimed to conceptually replicate previous pupillometry stress buffering results and extend the previous findings by including a generalizable, real-life stressor—viewing a horror movie—and multidimensional relationship quality effects. Eighty-three couples (166 participants) were quasi-grouped, based on a self-reported multidimensional relationship quality scale, to either supportive or ambivalent marital relationship conditions. They were then randomly assigned to either a spousal support (i.e., handholding) or non-support (spousal absence) condition and watched clips from both horror and nature movies while pupil dilation was measured. Tonic pupillary response results revealed that the horror video clips elicited a stress response and there were significant differences between the support and non-support conditions, as well as marital relationship quality conditions. These results frame the precision, speed, and sensitivity of pupillometry as a potentially fruitful method to investigate the causal mechanisms linking stress buffering and supportive marital relationships.
Why do people fall in love? Does passion fade with time? What makes for a happy, healthy relationship? This introduction to relationship science follows the lifecycle of a relationship – from attraction and initiation, to the hard work of relationship maintenance, to dissolution and ways to strengthen a relationship. Designed for advanced undergraduates studying psychology, communication or family studies, this textbook presents a fresh, diversity-infused approach to relationship science. It includes real-world examples and critical-thinking questions, callout boxes that challenge students to make connections, and researcher interviews that showcase the many career paths of relationship scientists. Article Spotlights reveal cutting-edge methods, while Diversity and Inclusion boxes celebrate the variety found in human love and connection. Throughout the book, students see the application of theory and come to recognize universal themes in relationships as well as the nuances of many findings. Instructors can access lecture slides, an instructor manual, and test banks.
Background: Social touch constitutes a key component of human social relationships although in some conditions with social dysfunction, such as autism, it can be perceived as unpleasant. We have previously shown that intranasal administration of oxytocin facilitates the pleasantness of social touch and activation of brain reward and social processing regions, although it is unclear if it influences responses to gentle stroking touch mediated by cutaneous C-touch fibers or pressure touch mediated by other types of fibers. Additionally, it is unclear whether endogenous oxytocin acts via direct entry into the brain or by increased peripheral blood concentrations.
Methods: In a randomized controlled design, we compared effects of intranasal (direct entry into the brain and increased peripheral concentrations) and oral (only peripheral increases) oxytocin on behavioral and neural responses to social touch targeting C-touch (gentle-stroking) or other (medium pressure without stroking) cutaneous receptors.
Results: Although both types of touch were perceived as pleasant, intranasal and oral oxytocin equivalently enhanced pleasantness ratings and responses of reward, orbitofrontal cortex, and social processing, superior temporal sulcus, regions only to gentle-stroking not medium pressure touch. Furthermore, increased blood oxytocin concentrations predicted the pleasantness of gentle stroking touch. The specificity of neural effects of oxytocin on C-touch targeted gentle stroking touch were confirmed by time-course extraction and classification analysis.
Conclusions: Increased peripheral concentrations of oxytocin primarily modulate its behavioral and neural responses to gentle social touch mediated by C-touch fibers. Findings have potential implications for using oxytocin therapeutically in conditions where social touch is unpleasant.
Funding: Key Technological Projects of Guangdong Province grant 2018B030335001.
Clinical trial number: NCT05265806.
Background:
The relationship between marital status and overall survival (OS) in adult patients with craniopharyngioma has not been explored in depth. We aimed to elucidate the impact of marital status on the prognosis of craniopharyngioma patients excluding bias from baseline demographics and treatment.
Methods:
We extracted 1539 patients diagnosed with craniopharyngioma between 2000 and 2019 from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database and divided patients into four marital subgroups: married, single, divorced/separated, and widowed. Kaplan-Meier curves with a log-rank test were used to discern differences in OS between marital subgroups. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression were used to identify independent prognostic factors of mortality.
Results:
There were 1539 eligible patients: 863 (56.1%) were married, 466 (30.3%) were single, 135 (8.8%) were divorced/separated, and 75 (4.9%) were widowed. Widowed patients had the worst mean OS, 5-year OS, and 10-year OS at 84.2 months, 58.0%, and 26.9%, respectively. After stratifying patients by age, our multivariate analysis showed that marital status was an independent predictor of mortality in middle-aged craniopharyngioma patients (40-60 years, p<0.001), but not in young adults (18-39 years, p= 0.646) or elderly patients (>60 years, p=0.076). Among middle-aged patients, single (hazard ratio [HR]=1.72, confidence interval [CI]=1.19-2.47, p=0.004) and divorced/separated patients (HR=2.29, CI=1.49-3.54, p<0.001) showed a higher risk of mortality compared to married patients (reference).
Conclusion:
Marital status is an independent prognostic factor predicting OS for middle-aged patients with craniopharyngioma. Providing additional social and psychological support for single and divorced/separated patients may improve outcomes for this vulnerable population.
There is a set of hypotheses commonly used in the literature to explain how pets affect human well-being (e.g., pets as social catalysts). Many studies are reported as giving results consistent with one or more of these, but they may not appear to be sufficient to explain the impacts of several pet-related activities on owner well-being. Confirmation bias may also overshadow the consideration of alternative mechanisms. This report aims to review and evaluate a range of psychosocial hypotheses that might help to explain how pets affect the well-being of their owners. This included a theoretical testing of the hypotheses against the recurring themes which emerged from four previously published qualitative frameworks relating to pet-related activities and their well-being outcomes. Twelve psychosocial hypotheses were generated and evaluated using this process: (1) social catalyst-repellent, (2) emotional contagion and empathy, (3) social support, (4) biophilia, (5) attributed fault, (6) social norms, (7) annoyance by noises, (8) routine, (9) caring, (10) exercise, (11) learning, and (12) affective touch. Only three presented potentially contradictory evidence (i.e., social catalyst-repellent, routine, and caring hypotheses), but closer examination revealed that these could not be rejected. These twelve hypotheses are a source of reference for a broader consideration of how pets might affect human well-being. Researchers are encouraged to use, test and/or challenge these hypotheses using established methods of scientific falsification in order to identify which are of the most important in relation to specific owner well-being outcomes.
Unmyelinated low-threshold mechanoreceptors (C-tactile, CT) in the human skin are important for signaling information about hedonic aspects of touch. We have previously reported that CT-targeted brush stroking by means of a robot reduces experimental mechanical pain. To improve the ecological validity of the stimulation, we developed standardized human–human touch gestures for signaling attention and calming. The attention gesture is characterized by tapping of the skin and is perceived as neither pleasant nor unpleasant, i.e., neutral. The calming gesture is characterized by slow stroking of the skin and is perceived as moderately to very pleasant. Furthermore, the attention (tapping) gesture is ineffective, whereas the calming (stroking) gesture is effective in activating CT-afferents. We conducted an fMRI study (n = 32) and capitalized on the previous development of touch gestures. We also developed an MR compatible stimulator for high-precision mechanical pain stimulation of the thenar region of the hand. Skin-to-skin touching (stroking or tapping) was applied and was followed by low and high pain. When the stroking gesture preceded pain, the pain was rated as less intense. When the tapping gesture preceded the pain, the pain was rated as more intense. Individual pain perception related to insula activation, but the activation was not higher for stroking than for tapping in any brain area during the stimulation period. However, during the evaluation period, stronger activation in the periaqueductal gray matter was observed after calming touch compared to after tapping touch. This finding invites speculation that human–human gentle skin stroking, effective in activating CT-afferents, reduced pain through neural processes involving CT-afferents and the descending pain pathway.
Körperpsychotherapie etabliert sich zunehmend und ist keine neue Entdeckung. Bereits vor über 120 Jahren war bekannt, dass über den Körper die Psyche erreicht werden kann und damit die verbale Psychotherapie effektiver und gegebenenfalls erst möglich wurde. Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen sprechen dafür, dass Körperpsychotherapie heute als fünfte Säule der allgemein anerkannten psychotherapeutischen Verfahren (PA, TP, VT, ST) angesehen werden kann. Sie hat sich aus der atemtherapeutischen und der Bewegung der Gymnastik sowie der Verwendung in der Psychoanalyse entwickelt. Sie ist weitestgehend in die tiefenpsychologische und verhaltenstherapeutische Psychotherapie integriert und kann zu den humanistischen Verfahren gezählt werden. Anwendung findet die Körperpsychotherapie beispielsweise in der Psychosomatischen Medizin sowie auf verschiedenen Gebieten der Psychotherapie. Laut den hier vorgelegten Befunden erreicht die Arbeit am Körper nonverbal Verarbeitetes, das sich tief in das implizite Körpergedächtnis eingegraben hat, lange bevor ein junger Mensch das Sprechen erlernte. Eine Möglichkeit, dies konzeptuell einzuordnen und therapeutisch nutzbar zu machen, ist das Modell der „verkörperten Selbstwahrnehmung“ nach Fogel, das Teile des Körperschemas beinhaltet. In der Bindungsbeziehung nicht adäquates Eingehen auf die kindlichen Bedürfnisse hat weitreichende Folgen auf das weitere Leben. In Untersuchungen konnte gezeigt werden, wie sich Störungen in der Entwicklung eines Kindes in Form von Körperschemastörungen und Körperdissoziationen, in Emotionsregulations- und als Entwicklungstraumastörung manifestieren können. Diese sind weit verbreitet und Teil einer Gesellschaft, die auf Leistung und Effizienz ausgerichtet ist und in Zusammenhang mit chronischem Stress stehen. Evolutionsgeschichtlich begründete Überlebensmuster werden durch chronischen Stress aktiviert und sind Ursache zahlreicher Erkrankungen. Hierfür liefert Porges mit seiner Polyvagal-Theorie einen neuen neurobiologischen Erklärungsansatz. Durch eine Imbalance stressauslösender und entspannender Faktoren zugunsten des Stresses werden körpereigene Selbstheilungskräfte der Selbstregulation verhindert und die Resilienzfähigkeit eingeschränkt. Selbstregulation und Resilienz sind vorhanden, wenn das Ruhe- und Bindungssystem dominiert im Gegensatz zur Kampf-, Flucht- und Erstarrungsreaktion. In seiner Hypothese zeigt Porges auf, wie das autonome Nervensystem Verhaltensweisen beeinflusst und wie diesen begegnet werden kann. Durch den sympathischen Zweig wird die An- und Verspannungsreaktion auf körperlicher Seite mit den auch auf der psychischen Seite verbundenen Reaktionen vermittelt. Diesem kann durch die parasympathisch vermittelte Oxytocin-Freisetzung begegnet werden. Durch eine Balance dieser beiden Waagschalen kann körperliche und seelische Gesundheit sowie Resilienzfähigkeit gefördert werden. Die Körperpsychotherapie bietet auch aus meiner Sicht eine noch unterschätzte Möglichkeit, die Balance wieder herzustellen. Eine Methode, die positive durch Oxytocin vermittelte heilsame Reaktionen in Gang zu setzt, stellt die berührende Körperarbeit dar wie sie beispielsweise nach der Rosen-Methode praktiziert wird. Körperpsychotherapie im Allgemeinen kann in der Behandlung von Depressionen, Angst- und psychosomatischen Störungen hilfreich sein. Sie ist empirisch in einer umfassenden Theorie begründet und fundiert auf neurobiologischen und neurowissenschaftlichen Erkenntnissen. Aus Sicht der Autorin handelt es sich bei der Körperpsychotherapie angesichts der vorliegenden Befunde und theoretischen Wirkkonzepte um einen therapeutischen Ansatz, der wesentlich dazu beitragen kann, die Behandlung psychischer Störungen kosteneffizienter und wirksamer zu gestalten. Um differenzierter zwischen theoretischem Potential und tatsächlich nachweisbaren Effekten körperpsychotherapeutischer Methoden unterscheiden zu können, ist es aus meiner Sicht dringend zu empfehlen, körperpsychotherapeutische Arbeitsansätze exakter zu erforschen. Beispielsweise wäre es lang- oder mittelfristig auch wünschenswert, Forschungsdaten für eine präzisere Indikationsstellung zur Verfügung zu haben. Dabei wäre beispielweise zu klären, welche Verfahren für welche Störungsbilder, in welchem Behandlungssetting und für welche Behandlungsdauer in Frage kommen. Auch fehlen hinsichtlich der Kontraindikationen belastbare Forschungsdaten zu den oben benannten Empfehlungen diverser Vertreter der Körperpsychotherapie. Aufgrund des hohen Erklärungspotentials für das individuelle Erleben psychisch beeinträchtigter Personen, das beispielsweise die Polyvagal-Theorie nach Porges oder die verkörperte Selbstwahrnehmung nach Fogel bieten, erscheint mir auch die Forderung nach einer Berücksichtigung körperpsychotherapeutischer Theorien und Methoden in der Ausbildung von Ärzten und Psychologen nachvollziehbar und sinnvoll. Aufgrund der in dieser Arbeit zusammengetragenen Ergebnisse halte ich es für dringend empfehlenswert, die Körperpsychotherapie als eigenständiges Behandlungselement in die fachgerechte Versorgung psychisch Erkrankter aufzunehmen, sofern keine der erwähnten Kontraindikationen dem widersprechen.
Background
Older adults are increasingly lonely and at risk for hypertension. Endogenous oxytocin levels are associated with lowering blood pressure (BP), suggesting value in increasing oxytocin. Regular practice of Tai Chi improves BP and mood; we explored a single session of Tai Chi Easy (TCE) with older adults and feasibility of measuring oxytocin as a key biomarker.
Method
In a single-arm pre-post design pilot study, 21 older adults (age 55-80) with mild-moderate hypertension practiced a single session (50-minutes) TCE. BP, psychosocial measures, and saliva samples were collected pre/post to examine feasibility of acute measures of oxytocin and explore effect sizes of outcomes. Participants (N=21; 19% Latinx, 76.2% female, mean age 66.76).
Results
BP systolic: 138.43 to 134.86; diastolic 78.48 to 78.00 (p >.05; Cohen’s d -0.23; -.08 respectively). Total Mood Disturbance (TMD) and Connection (CN) improved [TMD mean pre 41.891 (SD=19.60) to post 35.00 (SD=10.21), p = 0.01; Cohen’s d -0.67); CN mean 7.85 (SD=2.01) to post 9.05 (SD=1.00), p= 0.01; Cohen’s d 0.70]. Baseline oxytocin was positively correlated with baseline loneliness (N=14, r=.599); pre/post oxytocin changes were negatively correlated with baseline loneliness (N=14, r=-.585). BP decrease was associated with characteristics of the intervention: “flow” (coef=.58; N=17) and meditative/breath focus (coef=-1.78; N=17).
Discussion/Conclusion
Medium to large effect sizes indicating change in mood and connection were found for this single session intervention. Knowing that Tai Chi improves BP when practiced over time, this TCE intervention shows promise for planning a fully powered, randomized controlled study of BP, mood and perceptions of connection in hypertensive older adults. Feasibility of assessing acute salivary oxytocin is less promising. Increase in oxytocin levels occurred for those less lonely, but declined for lonelier participants. With different responses based on baseline loneliness scores, no mean change in oxytocin levels was found. Seemingly unstable levels (possibly related to interaction with study staff) suggests the need for further testing in more controlled study designs. Finally, BP associations with meditative/breath focus and flow could be further explored in future study designs addressing mediation.
Social touch is pleasurable and thus constitutes a key component of human social relationships. Intranasal administration of the neuropeptide oxytocin can facilitate the pleasantness of social touch although it is unclear whether it acts specifically on responses to C-touch or other types of cutaneous afferent fibers. Additionally, it is unclear whether effects of intranasal oxytocin are mediated via its direct entry into the brain or indirectly by increased peripheral concentrations. In a randomized controlled design, we therefore investigated effects of intranasally and orally (only increases peripheral concentrations) administered oxytocin on behavioral and neural responses to social touch targeting either C-touch (gentle-stroking touch) or other- (medium pressure massage) types of cutaneous receptors. Although both types of touch were perceived as pleasant, intranasal and oral oxytocin only, and equivalently, enhanced pleasantness ratings and neural responses in reward and touch processing regions to gentle-stroking touch. Plasma oxytocin concentrations also significantly predicted pleasantness ratings and were associated with brain reward responses. Together, our findings provide evidence that exogenously administered oxytocin primarily modulates behavioral and neural responses to C-touch fiber mediated social touch and suggest that it acts via peripheral-mediated routes.
Clinical Trial Registration ID #: NCT05265806.
Two therapeutic modalities of touch, physical touch and healing touch or reiki, used by nurses in cancer care to promote healing, resilience, and well-being are discussed from their theoretical underpinnings, scientific evidence, and relevant clinical contexts.The empirically known effects of affective (gentle, tactile touch) and affectionate physical touch and of biofield modalities (reiki and healing touch) within the context of the nurse-patient and patient-caregiver or partner relationships are examined through experimental and clinical research findings in relation to psychological, physical, and neurobiological outcomes.KeywordsAffective and affectionate forms of physical touchAttachment and embodiment theoriesReikiTherapeutic and healing touchBiofield modalitiesCancer care
Much has been documented on the association between stress and health. Both direct and indirect pathways have been identified and explored extensively, helping us understand trajectories from healthy individuals to reductions in well-being, and development of preclinical and disease states. Some of these pathways are well established within the field; physiology, affect regulation, and social relationships. The purpose of this review is to push beyond what is known separately about these pathways and provide a means to integrate them using one common mechanism. We propose that social touch, specifically affective touch, may be the missing active ingredient fundamental to our understanding of how close relationships contribute to stress and health. We provide empirical evidence detailing how affective touch is fundamental to the development of our stress systems, critical to the development of attachment bonds and subsequent social relationships across the life course. We will also explore how we can use this in applied contexts and incorporate it into existing interventions.
Social relationships are an important driver of health, and inflammation has been proposed as a key neurobiological mechanism to explain this effect. Behavioral researchers have focused on social relationship quality to further explain the association, yet recent research indicates that relationship quality may not be as robust a predictor as previously thought. Here, building on animal models of social bonds and recent theory on close relationships, we instead investigated merely being in the physical presence of one’s romantic partner. Specifically, we tested the hypothesis that spending more time co-present with a loved partner in everyday life would be associated with lower c-reactive protein (CRP). Three times over the course of one month, 100 people in romantic relationships reported how much time they spent in the same physical space as their partner in the prior 24 hours, in minutes, and provided a sample of blood for CRP assay (n observations = 296). Results from multi-level models showed that when one reported spending more time in the physical presence of their partner they had lower CRP – an effect that was independent from social relationship quality explanations from the prior literature, including romantic relationship quality, hostility, and loneliness. These findings move past global assessments of social isolation to consider a novel everyday behavior that is of great interest in the non-human animal literature – spending time together -- as a potential mechanism linking high-quality relationships and physical health in adult humans. The findings also point to future research on additional behavioral mechanisms that are not dependent on stress pathways: people in high-quality relationships tend to spend enjoyable and affectionate time with one another, which may impact inflammation.
A robust body of research attests to the mental and physical health correlates and consequences of affectionate communication. Like much research on personal relationships, however, this work may overrepresent certain portions of the population, may underrepresent others, and may not effectively account for intersections of identities. We define intersectionality as comprising the unique effects of two or more social identities interacting with each other. To assess this literature with an eye toward intersectionality and representation, the present article reports a systematic review of 86 individual empirical studies representing 26,013 participants. The review concludes that there is no explicit or implicit attention to intersectionality in the existing research on affectionate communication and health, and that U.S. Americans, women, younger individuals, white individuals, and students are overrepresented in research samples. The review ends with future directions to encourage more inclusive research on this topic.
There has been much growth in the interest and use of family-level and dyadic-level theories and methodologies to explore the influence of social relationships on health and the influence of health on social relationships. Social relationships include those with romantic partners, friends, siblings, children, and care professionals. These individuals play a significant role in the physical health, mental health, and well-being of a patient. Studying health and well-being and consideration of both partners in the context of these close social relationships is clearly important in health research. Where one or both individuals have a health condition, then an important part of relationship can include medicines optimization and illness management. Both partners become the unit of study—also known as a dyad. Dyadic research approaches can be utilized in qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods studies. Literature on chronic illness and stages of illness has put a spotlight on the need to study dyads. An important, unique, and valuable perspective is obtained on the complex interactions that underpin the management of illness and medicines optimization by situating experiences of individuals within the context of the dyad. This chapter discusses how to utilize dyads in medicines optimization and illness management research.
Shared positive activities, such as engaging conversations and interactive play, enhance relationships and buffer the consequences of negative interactions. The current research tested whether affectionate touch (a prime target for intervention) encourages people to prioritize other shared positive activities and to view shared activities more positively. In a pre-registered dyadic diary study of married couples (Study 1), greater affectionate touch on one day predicted increases in shared positive activities concurrently and prospectively. In a pre-registered dyadic experiment (Study 2), a brief affectionate touch intervention increased self-reported (but not observer-rated) shared positive activities immediately and increased shared positive activities over the following week for people who do not typically engage in such activities. Participants assigned to touch (particularly those low in attachment anxiety) also perceived their partners more positively during shared activities. These results suggest that touch may facilitate positive relationship experiences broadly and supports a theoretical model of affectionate touch.
Leisure experiences are often associated with social connectedness. One measure of social connection underutilized in leisure studies is the neurohormone oxytocin. This methodological note considers issues researchers need to address when incorporating oxytocin in their study design. Noninvasive sources for sampling oxytocin include saliva and urine; however, the decision about which method to employ is not well documented. This study provides the first methodological note on collecting oxytocin in leisure studies and provides a comparison of urine vs. saliva measures for oxytocin in the context of leisure activities. Our findings indicate that urine samples are more sensitive to oxytocin change in leisure studies. The discussion provides additional practical implications for future research studies regarding the choice between urine and saliva data collection methods.
Past research has shown consistent benefits associated with and resulting from affectionate touch, though past research is based almost exclusively on highly satisfied and otherwise non-representative samples. The current research used two nationally representative samples to test correlates (Study 1) and anticipated consequences (Study 2) of affectionate touch in romantic relationships. In Study 1, greater kissing frequency was associated with greater individual well-being, and these links were especially pronounced in the most satisfying relationships. In Study 2, participants who were randomly assigned to imagine receiving affectionate touch from their spouse anticipated greater individual well-being (less stress and greater life satisfaction) and relational benefits (greater perceived partner affection, state security, cognitive interdependence, and relationship quality). These benefits were stronger among people with moderate or high relationship satisfaction but observed even for the subset of individuals (approximately one-third of the sample) who rated their relationships as “distressed.” Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Oxytocin (OT) is known for its positive influence on maternal motivation and behavior, however, the effects of intranasal oxytocin (IN-OT) on neural activity during the perception of infant stimuli are often inconsistent. These discrepancies further reveal the need to take into account individual differences in IN-OT research. The present study aims to examine whether the effects of IN-OT on maternal-related neural responses to infant faces were moderated by participants' attachment style. Using a between-groups, double-blind, placebo-controlled design, 65 nulliparous females were randomly assigned to groups receiving a single dose of 24 IU oxytocin or a placebo via intranasal administration. The neural responses of participants were assessed during a facial recognition task with joy, neutral, and crying infant faces. The results indicated that females with high levels of attachment anxiety exhibited decreased right amygdala activity in response to infant joy faces and decreased bilateral insula activity in response to infant crying faces following IN-OT. Meanwhile, IN-OT enhanced bilateral amygdala and left inferior orbital frontal cortex (OFC) activity in response to infant crying faces in females with high levels of attachment avoidance. In addition, some beneficial effects of IN-OT were also observed in females with low levels of attachment avoidance or anxiety. Our findings demonstrated that the beneficial effects of IN-OT on neural responses to infant faces may depend on individual differences in adult attachment style, thereby contributing to our understanding of the role of OT in maternal caregiving.
The study of intimate relationships and health is a fast-growing discipline with numerous well-developed theories, many of which outline specific interpersonal behaviors and psychological pathways that may give rise to good or poor health. In this article, we argue that the study of relationships and health can move toward interrogating these mechanisms with greater precision and detail, but doing so will require a shift in the nature of commonly used research methods in this area. Accordingly, we draw heavily on the science of behavior change and discuss six key methodologies that may galvanize the mechanistic study of relationships and health: dismantling studies, factorial studies, experimental therapeutics, experimental mediation research, multiple assessments, and recursive modeling. We provide empirical examples for each strategy and outline new ways in which a given approach may be used to study the mechanisms linking intimate relationships and health. We conclude by discussing the key challenges and limitations for using these research strategies as well as novel ideas about how to integrate this work into existing paradigms within the field.
This chapter presents the conceptual framework for understanding the effective factors of external applications used in pediatric care. Anchored in the historical origins of external applications within traditional and complementary medicine, the subsections of the chapter focus on the definition of health according to a holistic approach and on positive health promotion according to salutogenetic principles. The individual needs of young patients, parents, and caregivers in health promotion are discussed as another framework. This chapter also provides insight into the broad spectrum of effective factors of external applications with special importance attached to interpersonal attention and interpersonal touch for health development and health promotion, as well as the chemical and physical effective factors of the applications themselves.
This article introduces a review of research that has implemented oxytocin measurements in different fluids such as plasma, cerebrospinal fluid, urine and, mainly, saliva. The main purpose is to evaluate the level of evidence supporting the measurement of this biomarker implicated in a variety of psychological and social processes. First, a review of the technical developments that allowed the characterization, function establishing, and central and peripheral levels of this hormone is proposed. Then, the article approaches the current discussions regarding the level of reliability of the laboratory techniques that enable the measurement of oxytocin, focusing mainly on the determination of its concentration in saliva through Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). Finally, research results, which have established the major physiological correlates of this hormone in fields such as social neuroscience and neuropsychology, are collected and discussed in terms of the hormone measurement methods that different authors have used. In this way, the article is expected to contribute to the panorama of debates and current perspectives regarding investigation involving this important biomarker.
Zusammenfassung. High- und Low-Fives stellen im Sport verbreitete aber unerforschte Phänomene dar. Ziel der Studie ist es, den bislang unklaren Einfluss auf psychophysiologische, soziale und leistungsrelevante Parameter zu untersuchen. In einem Innersubjektdesign nahmen 23 tischtennisaffine Dyaden teil. Vor und nach den Bewegungsmanipulationen (High-Fives alleine; High-Fives mit Partner_in; Low-Fives alleine; Low-Fives mit Partner_in; Kontrollbedingung) gaben Versuchspersonen Auskunft über Motivation, Macht, Affekt und wahrgenommene Nähe zum/zur Partner_in. Ebenfalls gaben sie Speichel zur Erfassung von Cortisol ab. Anschließend wurde die Aufschlagleistung im Tischtennis erhoben. Ergebnisse zeigten weder Unterschiede in der Veränderung der psychophysiologischen Parameter noch in der Leistung zwischen den Bedingungen. Lediglich die wahrgenommene Nähe stieg in den Bedingungen mit Partner_in an. Die Ergebnisse widersprechen den Theorien des Embodiments, was hinsichtlich der unnatürlichen Bewegungsausführung diskutiert wird. Allerdings sind unsere Ergebnisse im Einklang mit Theorien über die Funktionen von Berührungen und zeigen erstmalig für den sportlichen Kontext, dass High- und Low-Fives einen positiven Effekt auf soziale Strukturen haben.
This investigation was designed to evaluate the production rates and concentrations of salivary a-amylase as a measure of adrenergic activity under several conditions of stress in human subjects. Saliva and blood samples were simultaneously collected from men at four 15 min intervals both before and after regimens for exercise, a written examination, or a rest period. The regressions of salivary a-amylase on plasma norepinephrine (NE) concentrations were significant for both exercise (P < 0–001) and examination (P < 0.01) protocols. Aerobic exercise induced a 3-fold mean increase in a-amylase; both NE and epinephrine (EP) increased ≅5-fold over control levels. Levels of a-amylase and NE returned to control levels within 30.45 min after exercise, but EP remained elevated by ≅2-fold during the remaining hour of observation. During the written examination, α-amylase and NE, but not EP, concentrations increased in parallel. In further studies the effects of exercise and exposure to heat and cold on the relationship of salivary a-amylase to heart rate and body temperature were investigated. Greater intensities of exercise were associated with greater increases in a-amylase concentrations. During heat exposure in a sauna (66 ° C for 40 min) amylase, heart rate and body temperature all increased progressively. However, during exposure to cold (4 ° C for 40 min) amylase increased rapidly, though heart rate and body temperature remained unchanged. Salivary Cortisol concentrations were unchanged during exposure to heat or cold. We conclude that salivary a-amylase concentrations are predictive of plasma catecholamine levels, particularly NE, under a variety of stressful conditions, and may be a more direct and simple end point of catecholamine activity than are changes in heart rate.
This paper outlines two pathways through which social support can influence the prevention or progression of cardiovascular disease: health behaviors and neuroendocrine mechanisms. Its primary focus is on neuroendocrine pathways, reviewing data which suggest that lack of social support is etiologically related to coronary artery lesion development through two mechanisms: sympathetic-adrenomedullary influences on platelet function, heart rate and blood pressure in the initial endothelial injury; and pituitary-adrenal cortical factors involved in smooth muscle cell proliferation during progression of the lesion after injury has taken place. It hypothesizes that the buffering effect of social support on the cardiovascular system is mediated primarily through mechanisms associated with the release of oxytocin.
Pharmacological studies in humans and animals suggest the existence of vascular endothelial vasopressin (AVP)/oxytocin (OT) receptors that mediate a vasodilatory effect. However, the nature of the receptor subtype(s) involved in this vasodilatory response remains controversial, and its coupled intracellular pathways are unknown. Thus, we set out to determine the type and signaling pathways of the AVP/OT receptor(s) expressed in human vascular endothelial cells (ECs).
Saturation binding experiments with purified membranes of primary cultures of ECs from human umbilical vein (HUVEC), aorta (HAEC), and pulmonary artery (HPAEC) and [3H]AVP or[ 3H]OT revealed the existence of specific binding sites with a greater affinity for OT than AVP (Kd = 1.75 vs. 16.58 nm). Competition binding experiments in intact HUVECs (ECV304 cell line) with the AVP antagonist[ 125I]4-hydroxyphenacetyl-d-Tyr(Me)-Phe-Gln-Asn-Arg-Pro-Arg-NH2 or the OT antagonist[ 125I]d(CH2)5[O-Me-Tyr-Thr-Orn-Tyr-NH2]vasotocin, and various AVP/OT analogs confirmed the existence of a single class of surface receptors of the classical OT subtype.
RT-PCR experiments with total RNA extracted from HUVEC, HAEC, and HPAEC and specific primers for the human V1 vascular, V2 renal, V3 pituitary, and OT receptors amplified the OT receptor sequence only. No new receptor subtype could be amplified when using degenerate primers. DNA sequencing of the coding region of the human EC OT receptor revealed a nucleotide sequence 100% homologous to that of the uterine OT receptor reported previously.
Stimulation of ECs by OT produced mobilization of intracellular calcium and the release of nitric oxide that was prevented by chelation of extra- and intracellular calcium. No stimulation of cAMP or PG production was noted. Finally, OT stimulation of ECs led to a calcium- and protein kinase C-dependent cellular proliferation response.
Thus, human vascular ECs express OT receptors that are structurally identical to the uterine and mammary OT receptors. These endothelial OT receptors produce a calcium-dependent vasodilatory response via stimulation of the nitric oxide pathway and have a trophic action.
Produced and released by the heart, oxytocin (OT) acts on its cardiac receptors to decrease the cardiac rate and force of contraction. We hypothesized that it might also be produced in the vasculature and regulate vascular tone. Consequently, we prepared acid extracts of the pulmonary artery and vena cava of female rats. OT concentrations in dog and sheep aortae were equivalent to those of rat aorta (2745 +/- 180 pg/mg protein), indicating that it is present in the vasculature of several mammalian species. Reverse-phase HPLC of aorta and vena cava extracts revealed a single peak corresponding to the amidated OT nonapeptide. Reverse-transcribed PCR confirmed OT synthesis in these tissues. Using the selective OT receptor ligand compound VI, we detected a high number of OT-binding sites in the rat vena cava and aorta. Furthermore, OT receptor (OTR) mRNA was found in the vena cava, pulmonary vein, and pulmonary artery with lower levels in the aorta, suggesting vessel-specific OTR distribution. The abundance of OTR mRNA in the vena cava and pulmonary vein was associated with high atrial natriuretic peptide mRNA. In addition, we have demonstrated that diethylstilbestrol treatment of immature female rats increased OT significantly in the vena cava but not in the aorta and augmented OTR mRNA in both the aorta (4-fold) and vena cava (2-fold), implying regulation by estrogen. Altogether, these data suggest that the vasculature contains an intrinsic OT system, which may be involved in the regulation of vascular tone as well as vascular regrowth and remodeling.
The effects of dyadic satisfaction and conflict have not been well defined in the hemodialysis (HD) population. The aim of this study was to determine whether the perception of decreased dyadic satisfaction was associated with mortality in patients treated with HD, and if so, whether there were different relationships between risk factors, and differential outcomes in men and women. A total of 174 HD patients, primarily African-Americans, involved in dyadic relationships for more than 6 mo had indices of dyadic satisfaction, depression, perception of illness effects, social support, behavioral compliance with the dialysis prescription, and plasma interleukin-1 (IL-1) and beta-endorphin levels measured. Cox proportional hazards models assessed relative mortality risks. Patients' dyadic satisfaction scores correlated with beta-endorphin levels. There was no correlation of IL-1 or beta-endorphin with any psychosocial or behavioral compliance measure in the group as a whole. Correlations between psychosocial, medical, and neuroimmunologic variables were different in men and women. For women, dyadic satisfaction correlated with beta-endorphin levels, depression, and perception of illness. Women with higher dyadic satisfaction and decreased dyadic conflict were at decreased mortality risk, but dyadic adjustment indices were unassociated with differential survival in the larger group of men. Correlations between neuroendocrine and immune markers are different in African-American male and female HD patients. Greater dyadic satisfaction and lower dyadic conflict are independently associated with decreased mortality in female African-American HD patients, of the same order of magnitude as medical risk factors. Such effects may be attributable to a relationship between dyadic satisfaction and conflict and health-related behaviors, or through an effect on neuroendocrine or immunologic status.
The neuropeptide oxytocin (OT) enhances maternal behavior and decreases blood pressure (BP) and stress responses in animals. Thus, the relationship of OT responsivity to BP in 14 breast- and 11 bottle-feeding mothers of infants was examined. Laboratory BP was assessed during baseline, speech preparation, active speech, and recovery on 2 days, 1 in which baseline and speech were separated by 10 min of baby holding and the other by no baby contact. Systolic BP reactivity to speech was lower after baby contact. Plasma OT change from baseline to speech after baby contact defined OT increase, minimal OT change, and OT decrease groups. OT increase mothers were primarily breast-feeders, and they had lower BP throughout both stress sessions and after baby feeding at home than OT decrease mothers, who also had greater BP reactivity to preparation and recovery. These results suggest that oxytocin has antistress and BP-lowering effects in humans.
Although it is typically presumed that heterosexual individuals only fall in love with other-gender partners and gay-lesbian individuals only fall in love with same-gender partners, this is not always so. The author develops a biobehavioral model of love and desire to explain why. The model specifies that (a) the evolved processes underlying sexual desire and affectional bonding are functionally independent; (b) the processes underlying affectional bonding are not intrinsically oriented toward other-gender or same-gender partners: (c) the biobehavioral links between love and desire are bidirectional, particularly among women. These claims are supported by social-psychological, historical, and cross-cultural research on human love and sexuality as well as by evidence regarding the evolved biobehavioral mechanisms underlying mammalian mating and social bonding.
The presence of social support has been associated with decreased stress responsiveness. Recent animal studies suggest that the neuropeptide oxytocin is implicated both in prosocial behavior and in the central nervous control of neuroendocrine responses to stress. This study was designed to determine the effects of social support and oxytocin on cortisol, mood, and anxiety responses to psychosocial stress in humans.
In a placebo-controlled, double-blind study, 37 healthy men were exposed to the Trier Social Stress Test. All participants were randomly assigned to receive intranasal oxytocin (24 IU) or placebo 50 min before stress, and either social support from their best friend during the preparation period or no social support.
Salivary free cortisol levels were suppressed by social support in response to stress. Comparisons of pre- and poststress anxiety levels revealed an anxiolytic effect of oxytocin. More importantly, the combination of oxytocin and social support exhibited the lowest cortisol concentrations as well as increased calmness and decreased anxiety during stress.
Oxytocin seems to enhance the buffering effect of social support on stress responsiveness. These results concur with data from animal research suggesting an important role of oxytocin as an underlying biological mechanism for stress-protective effects of positive social interactions.
Massage therapy (MT) is an ancient form of treatment that is now gaining popularity as part of the complementary and alternative medical therapy movement. A meta-analysis was conducted of studies that used random assignment to test the effectiveness of MT. Mean effect sizes were calculated from 37 studies for 9 dependent variables. Single applications of MT reduced state anxiety, blood pressure, and heart rate but not negative mood, immediate assessment of pain, and cortisol level. Multiple applications reduced delayed assessment of pain. Reductions of trait anxiety and depression were MT's largest effects, with a course of treatment providing benefits similar in magnitude to those of psychotherapy. No moderators were statistically significant, though continued testing is needed. The limitations of a medical model of MT are discussed, and it is proposed that new MT theories and research use a psychotherapy perspective.
To assess the role of depression and lack of social support before myocardial infarction (MI) in determining outcome in a large representative sample of patients admitted after MI in the UK.
Prospective cohort design.
1034 consecutive patients were screened 3-4 days after MI.
Mortality and further cardiac events over one year after an MI.
At 12 months' follow up mortality and further cardiac events were assessed in 583 of 654 eligible patients (90% response); 140 of 589 for whom baseline data were collected (23.8%) were depressed before their MI. Patients who were depressed before their MI were not more likely to die (mortality 5.2% v 5.0% of non-depressed patients) or suffer further cardiac events (cardiac events rate 20.7% v 20.3% of non-depressed patients). After controlling for demographic factors and severity of MI, the absence of a close confidant predicted further cardiac events (hazard ratio 0.57, p = 0.022).
Lack of a close confidant but not depression before MI was associated with adverse outcome after MI in this sample. This association may be mediated by unhealthy behaviours and lack of compliance with medical recommendations, but it is also compatible with difficulties in early life leading to heart disease.
The author discusses 3 variables that assess different aspects of social relationships—social support, social integration, and negative interaction. The author argues that all 3 are associated with health outcomes, that these variables each influence health through different mechanisms, and that associations between these variables and health are not spurious findings attributable to our personalities. This argument suggests a broader view of how to intervene in social networks to improve health. This includes facilitating both social integration and social support by creating and nurturing both close (strong) and peripheral (weak) ties within natural social networks and reducing opportunities for negative social interaction. Finally, the author emphasizes the necessity to understand more about who benefits most and least from social- connectedness interventions.
Biological indicators for stress reactions are valuable markers in psychophysiological research and clinical practice. Since the release of salivary enzyme alpha-amylase was reported to react to physiological and psychological stressors, we set out to investigate human salivary alpha-amylase changes employing a reliable laboratory stress protocol to investigate the reactivity of salivary alpha-amylase to a brief period of psychosocial stress. In a within-subject repeated-measures design, 24 healthy adults were exposed to the TSST and a control condition on separate days with randomized sequence. Salivary alpha-amylase, salivary cortisol and heart rate were repeatedly measured before, during and after both conditions. Significant differences between psychosocial stress and the rest condition in alpha-amylase activity [F(3.74,86.06)=4.52; P=0.003], cortisol levels [F(4.21,88.32)=12.48; P<0.001] and heart rate [F(1,22)=81.15; P<0.001] were observed, with marked increases before and after stress. The data corroborate findings from other studies that showed increased levels of alpha-amylase before and after psychological stress. We discuss the role of salivary alpha-amylase as a promising candidate for a reliable, noninvasive marker of psychosocial stress.
Although it is typically presumed that heterosexual individuals only fall in love with other-gender partners and gay-lesbian individuals only fall in love with same-gender partners, this is not always so. The author develops a biobehavioral model of love and desire to explain why. The model specifies that (a) the evolved processes underlying sexual desire and affectional bonding are functionally independent; (b) the processes underlying affectional bonding are not intrinsically oriented toward other-gender or same-gender partners; (c) the biobehavioral links between love and desire are bidirectional, particularly among women. These claims are supported by social-psychological, historical, and cross-cultural research on human love and sexuality as well as by evidence regarding the evolved biobehavioral mechanisms underlying mammalian mating and social bonding.
In a highly select group of stable hypertensive patients, we have assessed the strength of association between various blood pressure measurements (24 h average automated ambulatory blood pressure, 4 h automated ambulatory morning average blood pressure, multiple office visit average blood pressure, and a single office visit average blood pressure) and various echocardiographic indices of hypertensive cardiac target organ damage (left atrial diameter, left ventricular end diastolic diameter, posterior wall thickness, combined wall thickness, relative wall thickness, left ventricular mass and mass index, and combined wall thickness/left ventricular diastolic diameter ratio). These data demonstrated that a single 24 h average diastolic blood pressure by automatic noninvasive ambulatory monitoring was a significantly better predictor of echocardiographic posterior wall thickness, combined wall thickness or relative wall thickness than the multiple office or single office average diastolic blood pressure. Also there were highly significant correlations between both 24 h average systolic and diastolic blood pressure and these echocardiographic parameters (in descending order of correlation coefficient): combined wall thickness, posterior wall thickness, combined wall thickness/left ventricular diastolic diameter, left ventricular mass index, relative wall thickness, and left ventricular mass. Left ventricular end diastolic dimension did not linearly correlate with any systolic or diastolic blood pressure measurement. Left atrial dimension demonstrated only a significant association with 24 h average diastolic blood pressure. Single office average blood pressure did not linearly correlate with any echocardiographic parameter.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
SAS PROC MIXED is a flexible program suitable for fitting multilevel models, hierarchical linear models, and individual growth models. Its position as an integrated program within the SAS statistical package makes it an ideal choice for empirical researchers and applied statisticians seeking to do data reduction, management, and analysis within a single statistical package. Because the program was developed from the perspective of a "mixed" statistical model with both random and fixed effects, its syntax and programming logic may appear unfamiliar to users in education and the social and behavioral sciences who tend to express these models as multilevel or hierarchical models. The purpose of this paper is to help users familiar with fitting multilevel models using other statistical packages (e.g., HLM, MLwiN, MIXREG) add SAS PROC MIXED to their array of analytic options. The paper is written as a step-by-step tutorial that shows how to fit the two most common multilevel models: (a) school effects models, designed for data on individuals nested within naturally occurring hierarchies (e.g., students within classes); and (b) individual growth models, designed for exploring longitudinal data (on individuals) over time. The conclusion discusses how these ideas can be extended straighforwardly to the case of three level models. An appendix presents general strategies for working with multilevel data in SAS and for creating data sets at several levels.
We reviewed the course of 1,076 patients with essential hypertension whose condition had been initially evaluated with both ambulatory BP (ABP) and office BP (OBP) measurements. During the period of follow-up (mean, five years), fatal cardiovascular events occurred in 75 patients, and nonfatal events occurred in 153. Each patient was classified according to the difference between the mean observed ABP at entry and that predicted from the mean OBP at entry by means of an equation for the linear regression of ABP on OBP. Life-table analyses demonstrated a significantly greater estimated cumulative ten-year incidence of both fatal and nonfatal events among patients with higher than predicted ABPs than among those with lower than predicted ABPs. Because OBPs were comparable in the two groups, we conclude that ABP was an important determinant of clinical outcome.(JAMA 1983;249:2792-2798)
Objective: To assess the role of depression and lack of social support before myocardial infarction (MI) in determining outcome in a large representative sample of patients admitted after MI in the UK. Design: Prospective cohort design. Patients: 1034 consecutive patients were screened 3–4 days after MI. Main outcome measures: Mortality and further cardiac events over one year after an MI. Results: At 12 months’ follow up mortality and further cardiac events were assessed in 583 of 654 eligible patients (90% response); 140 of 589 for whom baseline data were collected (23.8%) were depressed before their MI. Patients who were depressed before their MI were not more likely to die (mortality 5.2% v 5.0% of non-depressed patients) or suffer further cardiac events (cardiac events rate 20.7% v 20.3% of non-depressed patients). After controlling for demographic factors and severity of MI, the absence of a close confidant predicted further cardiac events (hazard ratio 0.57, p = 0.022). Conclusion: Lack of a close confidant but not depression before MI was associated with adverse outcome after MI in this sample. This association may be mediated by unhealthy behaviours and lack of compliance with medical recommendations, but it is also compatible with difficulties in early life leading to heart disease.
SAS PROC MIXED is a flexible program suitable for fitting multilevel models, hierarchical linear models, and individual growth models. Its position as an integrated program within the SAS statistical package makes it an ideal choice for empirical researchers and applied statisticians seeking to do data reduction, management, and analysis within a single statistical package. Because the program was developed from the perspective of a "mixed" statistical model with both random and fixed effects, its syntax and programming logic may appear unfamiliar to users in education and the social and behavioral sciences who tend to express these models as multilevel or hierarchical models. The purpose of this paper is to help users familiar with fitting multilevel models using other statistical packages (e.g., HLM, MLwiN, MIXREG) add SAS PROC MIXED to their array of analytic options. The paper is written as a step-by-step tutorial that shows how to fit the two most common multilevel models: (a) school effects models, designed for data on individuals nested within naturally occurring hierarchies (e.g., students within classes); and (b) individual growth models, designed for exploring longitudinal data (on individuals) over time. The conclusion discusses how these ideas can be extended straighforwardly to the case of three level models. An appendix presents general strategies for working with multilevel data in SAS and for creating data sets at several levels.
This paper outlines two pathways through which social support can influence the prevention or progression of cardiovascular disease: health behaviors and neuroendocrine mechanisms. Its primary focus is on neuroendocrine pathways, reviewing data which suggest that lack of social support is etiologically related to coronary artery lesion development through two mechanisms: sympathetic-adrenomedullary influences on platelet function, heart rate and blood pressure in the initial endothelial injury; and pituitary-adrenal cortical factors involved in smooth muscle cell proliferation during progression of the lesion after injury has taken place. It hypothesizes that the buffering effect of social support on the cardiovascular system is mediated primarily through mechanisms associated with the release of oxytocin.
Systemic subchronic oxytocin treatment significantly and substantially increased the Bmax values of the α2 agonist [3H]UK14.304 binding sites in the hypothalamus, the amygdala and the paraventricular thalamic nucleus of the rat as shown by quantitative receptor autoradiography. These results suggest that long-term modulation of autonomic and neuroendocrine functions and emotional behaviours elicited by brain oxytocin may involve enhancement of central α2-adrenoceptor function.
Abstract:Adolescent friendships containing the emotional intensity of romantic relationships, yet lacking sexual activity, have been documented in numerous cultures and historical periods. This research explores these relationships among contemporary young sexual-minority women. Phone interviews with 80 lesbian, bisexual, and unlabeled women between 18 and 25 years of age (M = 21.8, SD = 2.1) assessed characteristics of their closest adolescent friendships. Cluster analysis differentiated conventional from passionate friendships, the latter containing more characteristics of romantic relationships. Same-sex friendships were not more likely than cross-sex friendships to be classified as passionate, and passionate friendships were not disproportionately likely to involve sexual attraction. Same-sex passionate friendships were initiated at earlier ages than same-sex conventional friendships, and those that developed prior to a young woman's first same-sex sexual contact were less likely t journal article
The accuracy of 4 different ambulatory blood pressure (BP) monitors was assessed by comparing them to simultaneous intraarterial BP (contralateral brachial artery) during rest, isometric and dynamic (bicycle) exercise in 48 hypertensive patients undergoing invasive hemodynamic evaluation. The differences between the intraarterially determined BP and values obtained by the various monitors were then compared to differences between BP measured directly and by 2 clinicians using a standard mercury column in 10 additional hypertensive patients. The monitors studied were the Accutracker II (auscultatory with mandatory electrocardiographic gating), Colin ABPM 630 (auscultatory or oscillometric), Del Mar Pressurometer IV (auscultatory with optional electrocardiographic gating) and SpaceLabs 90202 (oscillometric). During rest, the differences between intraarterially and clinician-determined systolic and diastolic BP were 4 +/- 8 and -4 +/- 6 mm Hg, respectively. The Accutracker II and Colin ABPM 630 using the auscultatory method showed less disparity and closer limits of agreement (2 standard deviations of the mean difference) with intraarterial BP than the clinicians' measurements, whereas the other units showed similar or greater limits of agreement. During both isometric and dynamic exercise, mean BP differences between intraarterial and clinician determinations were similar to those at rest but the limits of agreement increased. The limits of agreement between intraarterial and monitor-derived BP also increased during exercise compared to differences observed at rest. The Accutracker II and Colin ABPM 630 using the auscultatory method had limits of agreement with intraarterial BP that were either similar to or less than the clinician's, whereas the Colin monitor using the oscillometric method and the Del Mar Pressurometer IV showed greater disparity.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
The value of ambulatory systolic blood pressure as a predictor of the development of cardiovascular complications was investigated in a sample of 761 hypertensive patients who had undergone ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and who were followed for an average of 5.5 years. Of the 695 patients without prior cardiovascular events at entry into the study, 11% subsequently experienced an event during the follow-up period (up to 10 years) compared to 48% of the 102 patients with a prior cardiovascular event. For each patient, a 'predicted' ambulatory systolic blood pressure was calculated, using the patient's office systolic blood pressure and the equation derived from regressing ambulatory on office blood pressure for the entire sample. By subtracting the predicted from the observed ambulatory pressure, a 'residual' ambulatory systolic blood pressure was derived for each patient, as a measure of that portion of the ambulatory pressure that could not be predicted from the office pressure. We used a Cox proportional hazards model to analyse the independent effect of each of the following patient characteristics at entry on the occurrence of subsequent cardiovascular events: sex, age, ECG evidence of left ventricular hypertrophy, hypertensive retinopathy, ambulatory systolic blood pressure, office systolic blood pressure, residual ambulatory systolic blood pressure and subsequent drug therapy. In both groups, with and without a prior cardiovascular event, women, younger patients and those with lower residual ambulatory systolic blood pressure tended to have longer periods of survival without new cardiovascular events. In the group without prior cardiovascular events, a lower office systolic blood pressure and the absence of advanced ECG evidence of left ventricular hypertrophy were also independently predictive of longer event-free survival.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) blood pressure levels generated by a new noninvasive ambulatory monitor, the Accutracker 102, were compared in the laboratory with intra-arterial pressure levels in 12 normotensive men, and with stethoscopic auscultatory determinations in 27 normotensive and hypertensive men and women over a wide range of within-subject pressure variations. In 11 subjects, its performance was also compared with another ambulatory monitor, the Spacelabs Model 5200. Highly positive correlations with both the intra-arterial (median r=+.90 for SBP, +.92 for DBP) and the stethoscopic standards (median r=+.93 for SBP, +.88 for DBP) were obtained using Accutracker's automatic readings (digital readout), while slightly higher correlations were obtained with hand-scoring of recorded data. The Spacelabs BP monitor also yielded readings that were highly correlated with stethoscopic readings (median r=+.83 for SBP, +.77 for DBP), although in 3 of the 11 subjects the Accutracker correlations were substantially higher than the Spacelabs correlations. Despite their generally good tracking of changes in pressure, both ambulatory monitors yielded absolute values in many subjects that differed by 5 mmHg or more from stethoscopic levels. The Accutracker's SBP levels were consistently too high and its DBP levels were occasionally too low, while Spacelabs' SBP and DBP values were too high and too low with equal frequency. However, mean deviation scores for each patient calculated from 5 concurrent ambulatory monitor and stethoscopic readings were shown to yield relatively stable correction factors for use when comparison with clinical standards is desired.
This paper presents a statistical analysis of treatment effects in 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure recordings. The statistical models account for circadian rhythms, subject effects, and the effects of treatment with drugs or relaxation therapy. In view of the heterogeneity of the subjects, we fit a separate linear model to the data of each subject, use robust statistical procedures to estimate the parameters of the linear models, and trim the data on a subject by subject basis. We use a meta-analytical method to combine the results of all subjects in the study.
PURPOSE: To examine the effect of marital status (married, widowed, divorced/separated, and never-married) on mortality in a cohort of 281,460 men and women, ages 45 years and older, of black and white races, who were part of the National Longitudinal Mortality Study (NLMS).METHODS: Major findings are based on assessments of estimated relative risk (RR) from Cox proportional hazards models. Duration of bereavement for the widowed is also estimated using the Cox model.RESULTS: For persons aged 45–64, each of the non-married groups generally showed statistically significant increased risk compared to their married counterparts (RR for white males, 1.24–1.39; white females, 1.46–1.49; black males, 1.27–1.57; and black females, 1.10–1.36). Older age groups tended to have smaller RRs than their younger counterparts. Elevated risk for non-married females was comparable to that of non-married males. For cardiovascular disease mortality, widowed and never-married white males ages 45–64 showed statistically significant increased RRs of 1.25 and 1.32, respectively, whereas each non-married group of white females showed statistically significant increased RRs from 1.50 to 1.60. RRs for causes other than cardiovascular diseases or cancers were high (for white males ages 45–64: widowed, 1.85; divorced/separated, 2.15; and never-married, 1.48). The importance of labor force status in determining the elevated risk of non-married males compared to non-married females by race is shown.CONCLUSIONS: Each of the non-married categories show elevated RR of death compared to married persons, and these effects continue to be strong after adjustment for other socioeconomic factors.
The relationship of the degree of severity of cardiovascular complications, graded according to ocular funduscopic, electrocardiographic, and roentgenographic (heart size) criteria to arterial blood pressure levels was investigated in 124 patients with essential hypertension. Blood pressure levels were determined both by casual measurements and by means of a portable semiautomatic blood pressure recorder worn during the patient's normal daily activities.
Statistical analysis of the data showed a significant correlation between the overall severity of hypertensive complications and the average casual systolic and diastolic blood pressures; the correlation with the corresponding pressure readings obtained with the portable recorder, however, was significantly higher. The relationship between the average pressures obtained with the portable recorder and the severity of complications was quantitative: the higher the mean systolic and diastolic pressures, the greater the average degree of severity.
No correlation was found between severity of complications and variability of the systolic or diastolic pressures recorded by the patient or between severity and duration of hypertension as best determined from the medical history. A low but significant correlation was found with age.
Few patients with hypertensive complications had mean recorder blood pressure levels below 120/80 mm Hg. On the other hand, all the patients whose mean recorder pressures exceeded 160/100 mm Hg had some degree of hypertensive complications. Attempts to predict overall severity of hypertensive complications in individual cases from the patients' mean recorder blood pressure levels and age demonstrated that patients in class II (moderate severity) could be distinguished from those in class 0 (no hypertensive complications) with great accuracy.
The results of the study support the view that the severity of cardiovascular complications essential hypertension is mainly determined by the average level of the arterial blood pressure. It is suggested that portable recorder measurements should aid in selecting patients likely to benefit from antihypertensive therapy and in guiding such treatment.
We reviewed the course of 1,076 patients with essential hypertension whose condition had been initially evaluated with both ambulatory BP (ABP) and office BP (OBP) measurements. During the period of follow-up (mean, five years), fatal cardiovascular events occurred in 75 patients, and nonfatal events occurred in 153. Each patient was classified according to the difference between the mean observed ABP at entry and that predicted from the mean OBP at entry by means of an equation for the linear regression of ABP on OBP. Life-table analyses demonstrated a significantly greater estimated cumulative ten-year incidence of both fatal and nonfatal events among patients with higher than predicted ABPs than among those with lower than predicted ABPs. Because OBPs were comparable in the two groups, we conclude that ABP was an important determinant of clinical outcome.
In considering new paradigms for the prevention and treatment of disease and disability, we need to incorporate ways to promote social support and develop family and community strengths and abilities into our interventions. There is now a substantial body of evidence that indicates that the extent to which social relationships are strong and supportive is related to the health of individuals who live within such social contexts. A review of population-based research on mortality risk over the last 20 years indicates that people who are isolated are at increased mortality risk from a number of causes. More recent studies indicate that social support is particularly related to survival postmyocardial infarction. The pathways that lead from such socioenvironmental exposures to poor health outcomes are likely to be multiple and include behavioral mechanisms and more direct physiologic pathways related to neuroendocrine or immunologic function. For social support to be health promoting, it must provide both a sense of belonging and intimacy and must help people to be more competent and self-efficacious. Acknowledging that health promotion rests on the shoulders not only of individuals but also of their families and communities means that we must commit resources over the next decade to designing, testing, and implementing interventions in this area.
The aim of the present investigation was to explore dose relationships for effects of oxytocin on spontaneous motor activity in the rat. Oxytocin in doses from 1-1000 micrograms/kg was given SC to male Sprague-Dawley rats, and spontaneous motor behavior was measured by means of photocell-operated open-field observations. In the rats treated with low doses of oxytocin (1-4 micrograms/kg), there was a decrease in peripheral locomotor activity. With increasing doses (250-1000 micrograms/kg), there were clear signs of sedative effects as indicated by a suppression of locomotor activity and rearing. The time course for the effect of oxytocin on peripheral activity (1 microgram/kg) and rearing (1 mg/kg) was tested. A maximal effect was obtained within 1 h and, thereafter, the behavior gradually returned to normal within 24 h. This spectrum of effects caused by oxytocin was similar to that of midazolam but different from that induced by raclopride.
Establishment of the behavioral significance of oxytocin neurotransmission in the brain has been a leading component in the emerging concept of neuropeptide regulation of behavior. Elucidating the behavioral effects of oxytocin has been facilitated by its profound regulation by estrogen in discrete brain areas and its subsequent role in estrogen-dependent responses. For example, female sexual behavior is estrogen dependent, estrogen markedly increases oxytocin binding in the ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus and infusion of oxytocin in this brain area increases female sexual behavior. A similar correlation exists for the role of oxytocin and estrogen in the regulation of maternal behavior. A possible underlying cause of these behavioral effects is that by acting as an anxiolytic, oxytocin reduces the inhibition inherent in social encounters. Behavioral tests in the laboratory frequently involve the exposure of the animal to a novel environment, such as a pup-retrieval apparatus or mating arena, combined with exposure to an unfamiliar conspecific. These stimuli are likely to induce a stress response and perhaps this anxiety is reduced by oxytocin. Recent evidence in mice suggests that oxytocin has anxiolytic properties in estrogen-treated females (McCarthy and Goldman, 1994) and supports the hypothesis that a unifying principal in oxytocin action in the brain is to facilitate social encounters by reducing the associated anxiety.
The posterior pituitary hormone oxytocin has modulatory effects on neural functioning that are significant to the regulation of behavior. Basic research in animals has established the importance of oxytocin in affiliation, including mating, pair bonding and parenting behaviors. It is also an important regulator of feeding, grooming and responses to stress. The actions of oxytocin in the brain are regulated by gonadal steroid hormones, particularly estrogen. Oxytocin might also influence normal behavior in humans, and dysfunctions in the oxytocin system might be involved in the etiology and expression of neuropsychiatric disorders.
Ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) may be an independent predictor of cardiovascular endpoints, but little is known about its psychosocial determinants. The acute effects of psychosocial processes on cardiovascular activity during daily life were examined by random-effects regression. Healthy adults (N = 120) were monitored over a 6-day period with ABP monitors and computer-assisted self-report assessments. Task strain, social conflict, and emotional activation were rated following each ABP measurement, as were activity, posture, and other covariates. Results show that blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR) were elevated during periods of emotional activation (high negative affect or high arousal). Diastolic BP was lower during periods involving high decisional control, and HR was lower during high-control, low-demand activities. There were substantial individual differences in the effects of psychosocial influences on ambulatory cardiovascular activity. Psychological factors are reliable determinants of ABP, which may account in part for the unique predictive value of ABP.