Medical and Health Documents

This is journal of neurology. You can download or read online in PDF format

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The last 10 years have seen an explosion of research on the relationships between the brain and the immune system. Much of this work has focused on the implications of psychological and social factors for our health. Psychological and physical stressors have been found to alter both humoral and cellular immune function. These changes have been attributed to direct central nervous system innervation of the immune system, to stress-elicited changes in circulating levels of hormones, and to stress-elicited coping behaviors such as smoking and poor diet that can also modify function of the immune system. Moreover, stress has also been associated with the deterioration of immune-related health outcomes, such as decreased host resistance to infection and the onset and exacerbation of autoimmune diseases. This book presents an unusually comprehensive and readable summary and integration of the various scientific disciplines that study brain-immune system–health interactions.

This very exciting area of basic and clinical research underscores the potential importance of stress reduction and stress coping as components of preventive medicine. The subject has been reported on in numerous edited multi-contributor publications. However, this volume differs in that it is a singly authored book written by a card-carrying physician/immunologist/scientist who actively contributes to both basic and clinical science. It will be of interest to researchers and health-care workers whose areas of interest include the brain and the immune system, the brain and health, or the immune system and health.

The book begins with a thorough description of the components and functions of the immune system, along with examples of how the functions of the various immune components can be altered by stress. This review of the immune system will be of interest not only to individuals who are unfamiliar with immunology, but also to immunologists, as numerous examples from animal and human studies are provided that document alterations of immune- system function resulting from exposure to stress. Following the overview

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