Transcript Health Psychology 2011

Health Psychology
Ch. 13
Music:
“Stressed Out”
A Tribe Called Quest
“Under Pressure”
Queen
Today’s Agenda
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1. The Field of Health Psychology
2. Stress:
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a) What makes events more stressful
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b) Appraisal and coping
3. Stress and Disease
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a) The physiological response
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b) Type A and heart disease
4. Coping with Stress and Promoting Health
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a) Relaxation
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b) Social support
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c) Exercise and nutrition
5. Movies:
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“Health and Stress” (6 min.)
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“Weight Control” (6 min.)
1. The field of Health Psychology
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Definition:
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Concerned with the role of behavior and psychological factors in preventing
illness and maintaining good health
3 Major killers in Canada:
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Heart Disease, Cancer, Stroke
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Causes?
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1) Tobacco
 #1 culprit for cancer
 contributes also to heart disease
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2) Being overweight
 emerges as second most important factor in cancer, after cigarettes
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3) Inactivity
 Lack of exercise
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4) Stress
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5) Diet & Alcohol
 Cancers caused by what you eat?
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red meat and processed meats with nitrates
 Excess alcohol related to several fatal illnesses
1. Health Psychology (cont’d)
Changing patterns of illness, p. 564
2. Stress
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Physical and psychological response to perceived
environmental threat
Stressors
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Threatening or challenging events that place demands on the
person.
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Major Life Events
Daily hassles
Catastrophic events
a) Factors that render events more harmful:
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Unpredictability/ uncertainty
Pressure
Lack of control
Repeated exposure/ chronicity
Loss and Failure
Conflict (p. 566-567)
2. Stress: Conflict (cont’d)
2. b) Appraisal and Coping with
Stress
Events
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Primary appraisal:
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Appraisal
“Am I O.K., or in trouble?”
Secondary appraisal:
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“How will I deal with this?”
Consider your ability to cope
Stress
Emotional, physical
& behavioural
responses p. 570-578
2. b) Coping with Stress
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Defensive Coping:
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Avoiding negative feelings associated with stress
through the use of defense mechanisms
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Emotion focused:
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Control or change emotional reaction:
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e.g. denial, see p. 577
E.g. venting, drinking, meditating (see p. 568)
Problem focused:
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Change or do something about the situation:
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E.g. study harder, get help
See constructive coping (p. 578 )
3. Stress and Disease
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a) The fight-or-flight response:
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See Figure 13.6, p. 574
3. Stress and Disease
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a) The physiological response:
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Secretion of catecholamines and corticosteroids
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Increases energy
Also reduces the effectiveness of the immune system
 Therefore, the ability to ward off infections is compromised
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Natural killer cells can’t do their jobs as well
 i.e. cannot destroy foreign agents or abnormal cells
 Impaired healing process
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Stress causes inflammation
 Provokes illness
3. Stress and
Disease (cont’d)
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Physical disorders aggravated
by stress:
3.b) Self-Report Questionnaire
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See questions shown in class
Give yourself a point for each answer that agrees
with the key below:
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1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
a, b
a
a, b
a
a, b
d
c
a
c
a
3. b) Type A and Heart
Disease
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7 or above =Type A
 3 or below=Type B
Coronary heart disease:
 Leading cause of death in North America
 Atherosclerosis: narrowing of coronary arteries (buildup of fatty deposits)
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Reduction in blood flow in coronary arteries (reduced supply to the heart)
Risk factors:
 Physical inactivity
 Smoking, obesity, family history
 High cholesterol, high blood pressure
 Depression:
 Physiological hyper-arousal
 Type A personality
3. b) Type A and Heart Disease
(cont’d)
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Friedman & Rosenman (1974)
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8-year study
3,000 healthy men
Type A: Competitive
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Impatient
Time-conscious/time-urgency
Easily-angered
Verbally aggressive
“workaholics”
Type B: Easy-going
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Non-competitive, relaxed
Enjoys leisure time
Understanding/forgiving
3. b) Follow-up
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After 8 years, 257 men suffered a heart attack
69% of these were Type A.
What makes Type As more prone to heart disease?
 1) self-imposed stress
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2) more physiologically reactive to stress
 3) less social support
Toxic core of Type A:
 cynical hostility
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As all forms of stress, involves inflammation
 Leads to platelet dysfunction and encourages coagulation
3. b) Type A and Heart Disease
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p. 583
4. Coping with Stress
and Promoting Health!
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1) Relaxation
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Meditation:
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Increases immune functioning/ suppression of corticosteroids
 Related to release of oxytocin
Social interactions also boost intellectual performance
3) Watch your Weight!
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Biofeedback: The mind influences the body!
2) Social Support:
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Counteracts the effects of stress on the body
Single most important thing women can do to reduce risk of breast cancer
4) Exercise:
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Lowers risk of stroke, heart disease, diabetes, depression, high blood pressure AND
improves overall brain health!
3 X per week, 30-45 min. each time
Aim for Body Mass Index of 19-24/ BMI = weight (kg)/height (meters)²
4. Promoting Health!
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5) Nutrition:
 Reduce “bad” fats (trans and saturated)
 Reduce processed meats (with nitrates)
 Reduce salt
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Reduce sugary drinks
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Helps reduce blood pressure
Related to weight gain and spikes in blood sugar levels
Eat more fish (increase omega 3’s)
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May help depression
Increase calcium, vitamin D, whole grains
 fruits and vegetables (to protect your heart)
6) Reduce alcohol:
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Especially for women and breast cancer
3rd Midterm
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Next week Feb. 15th
Same as before:
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60 multiple choice; 4 short answers
In class; 2 hours; worth 25% of overall grade
One question from movies shown in class
Tackle the problem!
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You know what to do…
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& You’ll O.K.
5. Short Movies
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“Health and Stress”
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Studies by Sheldon Cohen determine the mechanisms by
which stress affects the immune system, and how
emotional states like happiness and loneliness may
influence our ability to fight off infection. (6 min.)
“Weight Control”
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Researchers are helping people respond to the obesity
epidemic by determining the relative importance of
intensity and duration in exercise.
(6 min.)