In the realm of ancient music and literature, there has long been a belief in the idea of dying from a broken heart due to sadness and grief. Now, scientists have made groundbreaking discoveries about the intricate connections between our minds and bodies, shedding light on the physical harm that can result from these emotional states. The exciting news is that by understanding how our emotions influence our brains and bodies, scientists believe they can develop innovative treatments for serious conditions like chronic pain and cancer.
Medical professionals have long recognized that traumatic experiences can have detrimental effects on the heart. In extreme cases, such as broken-heart syndrome or Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, stress-inducing events cause sudden weakening of the heart muscles, which can prove fatal.
However, sadness and loss can also lead to insidious harm, even if it is not immediately catastrophic. A recent Swedish study analyzed the health records of over two million parents and found that those who had lost a child were more than twice as likely to develop atrial fibrillation, a condition characterized by irregular heartbeats that significantly increases the risk of stroke.
Dr. Dang Wei, an epidemiologist at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and the lead researcher of the study, explained that losing a loved one can have long-lasting effects on the heart. Individuals who experienced the loss of a close family member had higher risks of atrial fibrillation, heart disease, heart attack, stroke, and heart failure compared to those who hadn’t suffered such trauma.
But how exactly are emotions and heart health so closely intertwined? In Israel, immunology researcher Hedva Haykin of the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa has been studying the role of the ventral tegmental area (VTA), a brain region associated with positive emotions and motivation. Through post-mortem studies on mice, Haykin discovered that stimulating the VTA electronically resulted in significantly less scarring from heart attacks, with minimal damage observed. The activation of the brain’s positive-emotion VTA center seemed to trigger immune changes that aided in the reduction of harmful scar tissue. Further research is currently underway to unravel this process, potentially allowing doctors to harness the positive power of the mind to promote healing.
Other studies focusing on the VTA have uncovered crucial insights into its role in various disorders, particularly chronic pain. In 2020, a study led by neurobiologist Professor Gerald Zamponi from the University of Calgary demonstrated that VTA stimulation alleviated chronic pain in mice. The VTA’s transmission of dopamine, a powerful reward chemical, to the pain-producing area of the brain resulted in decreased activity in the cortex responsible for pain sensations. Professor Zamponi believes that by stimulating the VTA through positive motivation, individuals with chronic pain may experience relief from their symptoms.
While these ideas may initially sound unconventional, they align with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) recommendations. NICE advises against the use of drugs like non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, benzodiazepines, and opioids as first-line treatments for chronic pain due to inadequate evidence of their effectiveness and potential harm. Instead, they advocate for psychological approaches such as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). These therapies aim to help patients replace negative thinking with positive perspectives on their lives and future.
Hedva Haykin notes that while anecdotal evidence has long hinted at the benefits of positive thinking for survival during illness, being able to identify the pathway through which this effect occurs and demonstrating its efficacy in lab animals solidifies these findings. Carmine Pariante, a professor of biological psychiatry at King’s College London, welcomes these study findings, emphasizing the importance of understanding the intricate molecular mechanisms underlying the brain-body communication. Pariante clarifies that acknowledging the connection between the brain and immune system avoids the dismissing of physical ailments as being solely psychological, allowing for more effective treatment that addresses both the psychological and physiological aspects of diseases.
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