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Cardiovascular Stress Reactivity and Health: Recent Questions and Future Directions.
Anna C Whittaker1, Annie Ginty, Brian M Hughes
1From the Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport (Whittaker), University of Stirling, Stirling, Scotland, United Kingdom; Department of Psychology and Neuroscience (Ginty), Baylor University, Waco, Texas; School of Psychology (Hughes), National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland; Institute of Epidemiology & Health (Steptoe), University College London, London, United Kingdom; and Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Lovallo), Norman, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and VA Medical Center, Oklahoma.
Both high and low biological stress reactivity are linked to poor health outcomes. This review examines the reactivity hypothesis, its criticisms, and future research directions for understanding stress responses and health.
Area of Science:
- Psychosomatic Medicine
- Cardiovascular Physiology
- Stress Response Research
Background:
- High cardiovascular reactions to psychological stress are linked to hypertension, atherosclerosis, and cardiovascular disease.
- Low biological stress reactivity also poses significant health risks, though its mechanisms are less understood.
- The reactivity hypothesis has been a cornerstone in understanding stress and health, but recent data suggest a more complex picture.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the current utility of the reactivity hypothesis and related research.
- To address criticisms and identify future challenges in the field of stress reactivity.
- To explore the implications of both high and low stress reactivity for health outcomes.
Main Methods:
- This narrative review and opinion article is based on a panel discussion from the American Psychosomatic Society meeting in 2019.
- Key questions addressed include measurement of high/low reactivity, its health implications, and origins of low reactivity.
- Cardiovascular and cortisol stress reactivity were used as a model system.
Main Results:
- Both high and low ends of the biological stress reactivity spectrum are associated with adverse health outcomes.
- Understanding individual pathways from stress responses to health and disease remains challenging.
- Recent data necessitate a re-evaluation of the long-standing reactivity hypothesis.
Conclusions:
- Significant knowledge gaps and research issues persist in the study of biological stress reactivity.
- Systematic reviews and meta-analyses are crucial for advancing this research area.
- Further investigation is needed to fully elucidate the health consequences of varying stress reactivity levels.