The Psychoneuroimmunology of Chronic Disease: Exploring the Links Between Inflammation, Stress, and Illness

Recent years have witnessed considerable growth in the field of psychoneuroimmunology, which describes how psychological factors, such as stress and depression, impact the neurological and immune systems. Research increasingly indicates that psychological states play a key role in the development and exacerbation of inflammatory diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's, and autoimmune disorders.

In this book, editor Kathleen Kendall-Tackett and an elite group of researchers explore the ways physical and psychological stressors such as poor sleep, PTSD, and depression, trigger the inflammatory response and increase the risk of disease. They approach this material from a variety of perspectives. Chapters in Part I describe the biological processes involved in inflammation, focusing on both the typical bodily response to threat as well as on the long-term deleterious effects of stress upon the immune system; while chapters in Part II examine the role of psychosocial stress in disease etiology. Throughout, chapter authors present evidence of connections between mind and body, and emphasize the need for improved communication between physicians and mental health care providers.

This book will be a valuable resource for researchers as well as practitioners who hope to share the benefits of these findings with their clients.

Contributors

Foreword
—Janice Kiecolt-Glaser

Introduction
—Kathleen Kendall-Tackett

I. The Role of Inflammation in Disease Process

1. An Overview of Stress and Immunity
   —Maureen Groër, Mary W. Meagher, and Kathleen Kendall-Tackett

2. Inflammation, Fatty Acid Oxidation, and Neurodegenerative Disease
   —Mary Nivison, Angela L. Guillozet-Bongaarts, and Thomas J. Montine

3. Sleep and Inflammation: A Potential Link to Chronic Diseases
   —Edward C. Suarez and Harold Goforth

4. Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids, Inflammation, and Inflammatory Diseases
   —Philip C. Calder

II. The Link Between Stress, Inflammation, and Disease

1. Depression, Hostility, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, and Inflammation: The Corrosive Health Effects of Negative Mental States
   —Kathleen Kendall-Tackett

2. Cognitive and Behavioral Reactions to Stress Among Adults With PTSD: Implications for Immunity and Health
   —Jeffrey L. Kibler, Kavita Joshi, and Erin E. Hughes

3. Social Stress and Inflammation in the Exacerbation of Multiple Sclerosis: An Animal Model With Implications for Humans
   —Mary W. Meagher and C. Jane R. Welsh

4. Allostasis: A Model for Women's Health
   —Maureen Groër and the Women's Health Research Group at the University of South Florida College of Nursing

5. Treatments for Depression That Lower Inflammation: Additional Support for an Inflammatory Etiology of Depression
   —Kathleen Kendall-Tackett

Epilogue: Inflammation and Chronic Disease: Clinical Implications and Future Directions
—Kathleen Kendall-Tackett

Index

About the Editor

Kathleen Kendall-Tackett, PhD, a health psychologist and an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, is a clinical associate professor of pediatrics at Texas Tech University School of Medicines, Amarillo, and a fellow of the American Psychological Association^® in Divisions 38 (Health Psychology) and 56 (Trauma Psychology).

She is editor of Family & Intimate Partner Violence Quarterly and associate editor of Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, and she serves on the editorial boards of four other journals in family violence and perinatal health.

In addition to serving as acquisitions editor for Hale Publishing, Dr. Kendall-Tackett has authored more than 200 journal articles, book chapters, and other publications and has authored or edited 17 books in the fields of trauma, women's health, depression, and breastfeeding.

A founding member of APA's Division 56, she currently serves as division secretary.