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Through the Kaleidoscope Viewing the Contributions of the Behavioral and Social Sciences to Health -- The Barbara and Jerome Grossman Symposium (2002) / Chapter Skim
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Research to Understand the Mechanisms through which Social and Behavioral Factors Influence Health
Pages 31-35

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From page 31...
... Two good reasons, he said: "Biology underlies individual and social behavior; and individual behavior and the social environment exert powerful effects on health." To illustrate the "gradients of health across the range of socioeconomic status," he showed a graph that plotted a number of disorders osteoporosis, chronic disease, hypertension, and cervical cancer as a function of socioeconomic status, from its highest to lowest levels (see Figure A)
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From page 32...
... Other contributions of biology to psychosocial studies include providing information on the biological basis of resilience, often referred to as "positive health"; on the early warning signs for the risk of disease, called "predisease pathways"; and of course on the human genetic code, and the expression of its genes, now in the process of being deciphered. Biologists can provide information on the interactions between the body's systems, Dr.
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From page 33...
... accelerate atherosclerosis, particularly in a dominant animal vying for position in an unstable dominance hierarchy." From metabolism, he added, "we know very well that the hormones cortisol and catecholamines are involved in mobilizing and replenishing energy stores. But these same hormones participate in the development of insulin resistance and obesity and increased risk for cardiovascular disease." To apply some of this information, the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA)
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From page 34...
... McEwen said, should draw on additional "primary mediators," such as cytokines, anabolic hormones, and antioxidants, that have effects on many systems and are easy to measure. Similarly, we need "secondary outcomes," like cholesterol, bone marrow density, and atrophy of brain structures like the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex, to serve as "functional markers" of immune, cardiovascular, and cognitive function.
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From page 35...
... include behavioral and social environment as important factors in causing changes in biology." He noted that "it is somewhat ironic that the National Institutes of Health primarily studies disease, not the factors of positive health and resilience." This highlights the biggest and most fundamental challenge, Dr. McEwen said, which is to promote "the establishment of working groups that will give scientists time to get acquainted with each other, learn about each other's disciplines, and plan interdisciplinary studies."
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Key Terms

  • cardiovascular disease
  • socioeconomic status
  • life events
  • cognitive function
  • autonomic nervous

  • morbidity rates
  • energy stores
  • real disease
  • load scores
  • status decreased

  • prefrontal cortex
  • brain plays
  • cumulative wear
  • decreased anxiety
  • animal models

  • hormones cortisol
  • predict decline
  • negative pathways
  • marrow density
  • maternal care

  • involve changes
  • subjects participating
  • chronic disease
  • aging study
  • sleep deprivation

  • social behavior
  • sympathetic nervous
  • replenishing energy
  • powerful effects
  • colleagues collected


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