TY - JOUR
T1 - An experimental examination of worry and relaxation on cardiovascular, endocrine, and inflammatory processes
AU - Renna, Megan E.
AU - Hoyt, Michael A.
AU - Ottaviani, Cristina
AU - Mennin, Douglas S.
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported in part by National Institute of Health grants 1SC1CA187494 and T32 CA229114 .
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 Elsevier Ltd
Copyright:
Copyright 2020 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2020/12
Y1 - 2020/12
N2 - Background: Worry increases risk for long-term health issues by prolonging the physiological stress response. In contrast, relaxation may ameliorate the psychological and physiological burden resulting from worry. This study examined the impact of experimentally induced worry and relaxation on cortisol, heart rate variability (HRV), and inflammation. Method: Participants (N = 75) completed both a worry and relaxation induction (presented in a fixed order) while HRV was collected continuously. Three blood samples were taken (at baseline, after the worry induction, and after the relaxation induction) to measure IL-6, IFN-γ, TNF-α and serum cortisol. Results: There were significant changes in IL-6 (p < 0.001), IFN-γ (p < 0.001), HRV (p <.001), and cortisol (p <.001) but not in TNF-α (p = 0.19) across conditions. HRV increased significantly from baseline to worry and then decreased following relaxation. IL-6 changed significantly between worry and relaxation and continued to increase following relaxation. Cortisol decreased significantly across conditions. Several patterns of covariance between inflammation and HRV and/or cortisol also emerged. Conclusions: These findings offer novel insight into how worry influences the immune system and emphasize the utility of a multi-methods approach to understanding the impact of worry on physical health.
AB - Background: Worry increases risk for long-term health issues by prolonging the physiological stress response. In contrast, relaxation may ameliorate the psychological and physiological burden resulting from worry. This study examined the impact of experimentally induced worry and relaxation on cortisol, heart rate variability (HRV), and inflammation. Method: Participants (N = 75) completed both a worry and relaxation induction (presented in a fixed order) while HRV was collected continuously. Three blood samples were taken (at baseline, after the worry induction, and after the relaxation induction) to measure IL-6, IFN-γ, TNF-α and serum cortisol. Results: There were significant changes in IL-6 (p < 0.001), IFN-γ (p < 0.001), HRV (p <.001), and cortisol (p <.001) but not in TNF-α (p = 0.19) across conditions. HRV increased significantly from baseline to worry and then decreased following relaxation. IL-6 changed significantly between worry and relaxation and continued to increase following relaxation. Cortisol decreased significantly across conditions. Several patterns of covariance between inflammation and HRV and/or cortisol also emerged. Conclusions: These findings offer novel insight into how worry influences the immune system and emphasize the utility of a multi-methods approach to understanding the impact of worry on physical health.
KW - Cortisol
KW - Heart rate variability
KW - Inflammation
KW - Perseveration
KW - Worry
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U2 - 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2020.104870
DO - 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2020.104870
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85091805784
VL - 122
JO - Psychoneuroendocrinology
JF - Psychoneuroendocrinology
SN - 0306-4530
M1 - 104870
ER -