The Aging Brain by Timothy R. Jennings MD

Author:Timothy R. Jennings MD
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Health & Wellness;Dementia—Prevention | Lifestyles;REL012000;HEA039140;SEL030000
ISBN: 9781493409440
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2018-04-24T04:00:00+00:00

Ongoing Relationship Conflict

Healthy relationships promote better health and longevity, but ongoing relationship conflicts undermine health and shorten life span.

As described in chapter 3, early childhood experiences impact brain development. When those early childhood experiences are traumatic, the brain’s stress circuitry (amygdala) up-regulates and the braking mechanisms to calm the amygdala are impaired. Multiple studies have documented that healthy parent-child relationships reduce the risk of mental and physical illness and promote longer life. Children reared in homes with family conflict experience higher mental stress with higher rates of mental illness, obesity, diabetes, and inflammatory problems and die at a younger age than children raised in homes in which there is low conflict.4

Another recent study of nearly ten thousand men and women ages thirty-six to fifty-two examined how frequently they had conflict with their partners, children, friends, or neighbors and whether they worried about demands from their family. Eleven years later, 4 percent of the women and 6 percent of the men had died. Almost half the deaths were from cancer, the rest from heart disease, accidents, suicide, and liver disease from alcohol use. Those who had family conflict had 3 times higher risk of dying than those with low family conflict, and those who worried had 1.5 times higher risk of dying.5

The reason for this seems to be related to thought processes impacting the stress circuitry and either activating or calming it, with a subsequent effect on the immune response of either increasing or decreasing inflammation. This happens through multiple epigenetic pathways. Thus, healthy relationships can turn on anti-inflammatory genes and shut down inflammatory ones.

A small pilot study examined gene expression in the white blood cells of six lonely people compared to eight socially connected people and found 209 genes were expressed differently. The researchers discovered that in the lonely individuals, genes associated with inflammation were up-regulated and viral-fighting genes were down-regulated.6 This means the lonely individuals were more prone to infections and oxidative stress, with accelerated aging. Their findings were replicated in a larger study of ninety-three people.7

In a study published in JAMA Psychiatry in November 2016 researchers discovered an association between loneliness and the amount of amyloid (protein associated with increased risk for Alzheimer’s dementia) deposited in the brain of cognitively normal older adults. After controlling for age, sex, genetic vulnerability to amyloid clearance (ApoE4), socioeconomic status, depression, anxiety, and social network, it was discovered that a higher amyloid concentration was significantly associated with greater loneliness. Those with high amyloid concentrations in their brain were found to be 7.5 times more likely to be in the lonely group.8 This is likely due to the fact that loneliness increases the stress pathways, which increases inflammation and results in increased oxidative stress on the brain, contributing to more neuronal death and impaired repair mechanisms.

Healthy relationships require healthy people, so the first step to a healthy relationship is to do everything in your own power to be the healthiest person possible. Healthy people use their energies to benefit those with whom they

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