scholarly journals Is panic disorder a disorder of physical fitness? A heuristic proposal

F1000Research ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giampaolo Perna ◽  
Daniela Caldirola
Keyword(s):  
Panic Disorder ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Mental Disorder ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Physical Symptoms ◽  
The Body ◽  
Panic Attacks ◽  
False Alarms ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
The Central Nervous System

Currently, panic disorder (PD) is considered a mental disorder based on the assumptions that panic attacks (PAs) are “false alarms” that arise from abnormally sensitive defense systems in the central nervous system and that PD is treated with therapies specifically acting on anxiety or fear mechanisms. This article aims to propose an alternative perspective based on the results of some experimental studies. Our heuristic proposal suggests not only that PD may be a mental disorder but also that patients with PD have real abnormal body functioning, mainly involving cardiorespiratory and balance systems, leading to a decline in global physical fitness. PAs, as well as physical symptoms or discomfort in some environmental situations, may be “real alarms” signaling that the adaptability resources of an organism are insufficient to respond appropriately to some internal or external changes, thus representing the transient conscious awareness of an imbalance in body functioning. The antipanic properties of several modern treatments for PD may include their beneficial effects on body functions. Although anxiety or fear mechanisms are evidently involved in PD, we hypothesize that a reduction of physical fitness is the “primum movens” of PD, while anxiety or fear is induced and sustained by repeated signals of impaired body functioning. We propose considering panic in a broader perspective that offers a central role to the body and to contemplate the possible role of somatic treatments in PD.

scholarly journals Fear of body symptoms and sensations in patients with panic disorders and patients with somatic diseases

2009 ◽  
Vol 137 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 659-663 ◽  
Author(s):  
Milan Latas ◽  
Danilo Obradovic ◽  
Marina Pantic
Keyword(s):  
Myocardial Infarction ◽  
General Population ◽  
Panic Disorder ◽  
Somatic Symptoms ◽  
The Body ◽  
Panic Attacks ◽  
Somatic Illness ◽  
History Of ◽  
Body Sensations ◽  
High Level

Introduction. A cognitive model of aetiology of panic disorder assumes that people who experience frequent panic attacks have tendencies to catastrophically interpret normal and benign somatic sensations - as signs of serious illness. This arise the question: is this cognition specific for patients with panic disorder and in what intensity it is present in patients with serious somatic illness and in healthy subjects. Objective. The aim of the study was to ascertain the differences in the frequency and intensity of 'catastrophic' cognitions related to body sensations, and to ascertain the differences in the frequency and intensity of anxiety caused by different body sensations all related to three groups of subjects: a sample of patients with panic disorder, a sample of patients with history of myocardial infarction and a sample of healthy control subjects from general population. Methods. Three samples are observed in the study: A) 53 patients with the diagnosis of panic disorder; B) 25 patients with history of myocardial infarction; and C) 47 healthy controls from general population. The catastrophic cognitions were assessed by the Agoraphobic Cognitions Questionnaire (ACQ) and the Body Sensations Questionnaire (BSQ). These questionnaires assess the catastrophic thoughts associated with panic and agoraphobia (ACQ) and the fear of body sensations (BSQ). All study subjects answered questionnaires items, and the scores of the answers were compared among the groups. Results. The results of the study suggest that: 1) There is no statistical difference in the tendency to catastrophically interpret body sensations and therefore to induce anxiety in the samples of healthy general population and patients with history of myocardial infarction; 2) The patients with panic disorder have a statistically significantly more intensive tendency to catastrophically interpret benign somatic symptoms and therefore to induce a high level of anxiety in comparison to the sample of patients with the history of serious somatic illness (myocardial infarction) and the sample of healthy general population. Conclusion. The tendency to catastrophically interpret benign somatic symptoms and therefore to induce a high level of anxiety in patients with panic disorder, confirms the cognitive aetiology model of panic disorder and suggests that it should be the focus of prophylactic and therapeutic management of patients with panic disorder.

Meditation can produce beneficial effects to prevent cardiovascular disease

2014 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcia Kiyomi Koike ◽  
Roberto Cardoso
Keyword(s):  
Stress Reduction ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Pressure Control ◽  
The Body ◽  
Lifestyle Behaviour ◽  
Mortality And Morbidity ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Resistance Reduction ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Unhealthy Diet

AbstractCoronary heart disease is the major cause of global cardiovascular mortality and morbidity. Lifestyle behaviour contributes as a risk factor: unhealthy diet, sedentary lifestyle, tobacco, alcohol, hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia and psychosocial stress. Atherosclerosis pathologic mechanisms involving oxidative stress, dyslipidemia, inflammation and senescence are associated with arterial wall damage and plaque formation. Stress reduction was observed in several types of meditation. After meditation, hormonal orchestration modulates effects in the central nervous system and in the body. All types of meditation are associated with blood pressure control, enhancement in insulin resistance, reduction of lipid peroxidation and cellular senescence, independent of type of meditation. This review presents scientific evidence to explain how meditation can produce beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system, and particularly regarding vascular aspects.

Diet and Brain Health: Which Role for Polyphenols?

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 227-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanessa Castelli ◽  
Davide Grassi ◽  
Raffaella Bocale ◽  
Michele d'Angelo ◽  
Andrea Antonosante ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Performance ◽  
Brain Aging ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Brain Health ◽  
Lifestyle Modifications ◽  
Dietary Polyphenols ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
The Relationship

Background: The aging of western societies is leading to a dramatic increase in the prevalence of chronic conditions, threatening the health status and then the sustainability of our healthcare systems. In particular, dementia is being increasingly recognized as a public health priority, given its enormous socioeconomic burdens further amplified by the absence of treatments really effective in improving the clinical course of the disease. Methods: The question of whether some degree of cognitive deterioration is an inevitable part of aging or should be considered as a pathological pre-stage of dementia is currently debated. This is a field in need of research because accelerated brain aging as well as further decline in cognition might be preventable in the early stages of cognitive impairment. Herein, we discuss evidence from clinical and experimental studies on the role of polyphenols in preserving cognitive performance across life. Results: In recent years, the possibility of favorably influencing the cognitive trajectory through promotion of lifestyle modifications has been increasingly investigated. In particular, the relationship between nutritional habits and brain health has attracted special attention. Dietary polyphenols exhibit a strong potential to promote brain due to their efficacy in protecting neurons against oxidative stress-induced injury, suppressing neuroinflammation and in ameliorating cardiovascular risk factor control and cardiovascular function thus counteracting neurotoxicity and neurodegeneration. Conclusion: Emerging evidence suggest that dietary polyphenols, in particular flavonoids, may exert beneficial effects on the central nervous system thus representing a potential tool to preserve cognitive performance throught senescence.

Analysis of Posts on Social Network Service related to Panic Disorder using Text Mining (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moon-Ju Jeon ◽  
Sung-Man Bae
Keyword(s):  
Panic Disorder ◽  
Clinical Characteristics ◽  
Physical Symptoms ◽  
Panic Attacks ◽  
Clinical Aspects ◽  
Term Frequency ◽  
Document Frequency ◽  
Word Clouds ◽  
N Gram ◽  
And Coping

BACKGROUND Panic attacks have different clinical characteristics among individuals and countries, characterizing time, place, and symptoms are not clearly predictable OBJECTIVE This study aimed to analyze crucial keywords related to panic disorder and identify various clinical characteristics of panic attacks METHODS We collected 8,728 Twitter posts related to panic disorder from January 1 to December 4, 2020. First, we analyzed crucial and simultaneous emergence keywords related to panic disorder. For this, Term frequency, Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency, degree centrality, and N-gram analyses were conducted using Rstudio and TEXTOM and visualized as word clouds. Also, we classfied results of Term frequency for panic disorder into physical symptoms, triggers, time, place, affect, pathology, person, and coping. RESULTS First, depression, drugs, respiration, and stress were keywords related to panic disorder. Next, hyperventilation, palpitations, and shaking were common physical symptoms. Stress, sound, trauma, and coffee were also ranked high in terms of triggering situations. Additionally, in terms of time, morning, night, and dawn accounted for most of the time. Meanwhile, homes, schools, subways, and companies were ranked high as places of occurrence. Regarding affect, fear, tears, and embarrassment were also common. Furthermore, anxiety and depression were ranked high in terms of pathology. Finally, drugs and hospitals were ranked high in terms of coping. CONCLUSIONS These results help to understand the main characteristics of panic disorder and various aspects of unexpected panic attacks and are expected to be a basis for identifying the characteristic clinical aspects of panic disorder among Koreans.

scholarly journals Vagal control of the heart decreases during increasing imminence of interoceptive threat in patients with panic disorder and agoraphobia

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Richter ◽  
Anne Pietzner ◽  
Julian Koenig ◽  
Julian F. Thayer ◽  
Christiane A. Pané-Farré ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Panic Disorder ◽  
The Body ◽  
Panic Attacks ◽  
Strong Increase ◽  
Diagnostic Model ◽  
Vagal Control ◽  
Defensive Responses ◽  
Threat Cues ◽  
Imminent Threat

AbstractTheoretically, panic disorder and agoraphobia pathology can be conceptualized as a cascade of dynamically changing defensive responses to threat cues from inside the body. Guided by this trans-diagnostic model we tested the interaction between defensive activation and vagal control as a marker of prefrontal inhibition of subcortical defensive activation. We investigated ultra-short-term changes of vagally controlled high frequency heart rate variability (HRV) during a standardized threat challenge (entrapment) in n = 232 patients with panic disorder and agoraphobia, and its interaction with various indices of defensive activation. We found a strong inverse relationship between HRV and heart rate during threat, which was stronger at the beginning of exposure. Patients with a strong increase in heart rate showed a deactivation of prefrontal vagal control while patients showing less heart rate acceleration showed an increase in vagal control. Moreover, vagal control collapsed in case of imminent threat, i.e., when body symptoms increase and seem to get out of control. In these cases of defensive action patients either fled from the situation or experienced a panic attack. Active avoidance, panic attacks, and increased sympathetic arousal are associated with an inability to maintain vagal control over the heart suggesting that teaching such regulation strategies during exposure treatment might be helpful to keep prefrontal control, particularly during the transition zone from post-encounter to circa strike defense.Trial Registration Number: ISRCTN80046034.

scholarly journals Quercetin and curcumin effects in experimental pleural inflammation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristina Bidian ◽  
Daniela-Rodica Mitrea ◽  
Olivia Gabriela Vasile ◽  
Adriana Filip ◽  
Adriana Florinela Cătoi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oxidative Stress ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
The Body ◽  
Male Rats ◽  
Protective Effects ◽  
Control Groups ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Pulmonary Pathology ◽  
Anti Inflammatory ◽  
Antioxidant Effects

Background. The inflammatory mechanisms occur with the highest prevalence in pulmonary pathology. In pharmaceutical industry, carrageenan is used as a pro-inflammatory agent when the activity of anti-inflammatory agents is tested. The oxidative stress represents the imbalance between pro-oxidants and antioxidants which can lead to the activation of the oxidative mechanisms with noxius potential to the body. In experimental studies, quercetin is the most active flavonoid, having the highest anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. Curcumin has antioxidant effects that are similar to those of the standard antioxidants and exerts direct anti-inflammatory activity. Aims. The aim of this study is to determine the antioxidant effects of quercetin and curcumin on a carrageenan-induced pleural inflammation. Methods. Eight groups of adult male rats were used: Ia and Ib -control groups, IIa and IIb -with carrageenan administration, IIIa and IIIb -with curcumin and carrageenan, IVa and IVb -with quercetin and carrageenan administration. Blood and lung samples were taken at 4 hours (Ia, IIa, IIIa, IVa groups) and at 24 hours (Ib, IIb, IIIb, IVb groups) after carrageenan administration. Results. In serum, at 4 and at 24 hours, curcumin and quercetin showed protective effects, reducing the oxidative stress (malondialdehyde significantly decreased) and stimulating the antioxidant protection (ceruloplasmin and glutathione significantly increased) in rats with administration of these substances, in comparison to the group that received only carrageenan. In the lungs, at 4 hours, the oxidative stress was significantly reduced only in the rats that received quercetin (malondialdehyde significantly decreased), modifications that were not observed at 24 hours.     Conclusions. In serum, curcumin presented higher antioxidant effects, compared to quercetin. In lungs, quercetin administration showed superior beneficial effects, but only temporarily.

scholarly journals Correction of magnesium deficiency in the body with balneological means: experimental studies

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (Vol.10, No.3) ◽  
pp. 305-310
Author(s):  
Sergey GUSHCHA ◽  
Alexander PLAKIDA ◽  
Boris NASIBULLIN ◽  
Veronica VOLYANSKA ◽  
Ivan SAVITSKYІ ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nervous System ◽  
Magnesium Deficiency ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
The Body ◽  
Female Rats ◽  
White Female ◽  
Modern World ◽  
Vegetative Nervous System ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Low Levels

In the modern world, a lack of magnesium in the body is one of the most common deficient conditions in humans. Low levels of magnesium have been associated with a number of chronic diseases. This work is devoted to the study of the effect of the use of the balneological means "Magnesium oil" for the correction of the manifestations of experimentally induced magnesium deficiency. The experiment was conducted on 50 white female rats of the Wistar auto-breeding line which were divided into 3 equal groups: (1) control, (2) model of magnesium deficiency, (3) received "Magnesium oil". As a result of modeling the state of magnesium deficiency, significant changes are observed in the central nervous system, vegetative nervous system, and kidneys of animals. The use of balneological means "Magnesium oil" can significantly reduce the negative manifestations of magnesium deficiency.

scholarly journals The effects of plant-based diets on the body and the brain: a systematic review

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Evelyn Medawar ◽  
Sebastian Huhn ◽  
Arno Villringer ◽  
A. Veronica Witte
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Functions ◽  
Weight Status ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
The Body ◽  
Brain Health ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
The Brain

Abstract Western societies notice an increasing interest in plant-based eating patterns such as vegetarian and vegan, yet potential effects on the body and brain are a matter of debate. Therefore, we systematically reviewed existing human interventional studies on putative effects of a plant-based diet on the metabolism and cognition, and what is known about the underlying mechanisms. Using the search terms “plant-based OR vegan OR vegetarian AND diet AND intervention” in PubMed filtered for clinical trials in humans retrieved 205 studies out of which 27, plus an additional search extending the selection to another five studies, were eligible for inclusion based on three independent ratings. We found robust evidence for short- to moderate-term beneficial effects of plant-based diets versus conventional diets (duration ≤ 24 months) on weight status, energy metabolism and systemic inflammation in healthy participants, obese and type-2 diabetes patients. Initial experimental studies proposed novel microbiome-related pathways, by which plant-based diets modulate the gut microbiome towards a favorable diversity of bacteria species, yet a functional “bottom up” signaling of plant-based diet-induced microbial changes remains highly speculative. In addition, little is known, based on interventional studies about cognitive effects linked to plant-based diets. Thus, a causal impact of plant-based diets on cognitive functions, mental and neurological health and respective underlying mechanisms has yet to be demonstrated. In sum, the increasing interest for plant-based diets raises the opportunity for developing novel preventive and therapeutic strategies against obesity, eating disorders and related comorbidities. Still, putative effects of plant-based diets on brain health and cognitive functions as well as the underlying mechanisms remain largely unexplored and new studies need to address these questions.

scholarly journals Irisin, Two Years Later

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta G. Novelle ◽  
Cristina Contreras ◽  
Amparo Romero-Picó ◽  
Miguel López ◽  
Carlos Diéguez
Keyword(s):  
Drug Target ◽  
Therapeutic Potential ◽  
The Body ◽  
Full Potential ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Disease States ◽  
Major Interest ◽  
Fibronectin Type Iii ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Fibronectin Type

In January 2012, Boström and colleagues identified a new muscle tissue secreted peptide, which they named irisin, to highlight its role as a messenger that comes from skeletal muscle to other parts of the body. Irisin is a cleaved and secreted fragment of FNDC5 (also known as FRCP2 and PeP), a member of fibronectin type III repeat containing gene family. Major interest in this protein arose because of its great therapeutic potential in diabetes and perhaps also therapy for obesity. Here we review the most important aspects of irisin’s action and discuss its involvement in energy and metabolic homeostasis and whether the beneficial effects of exercise in these disease states could be mediated by this protein. In addition the effects of irisin at the central nervous system (CNS) are highlighted. It is concluded that although current and upcoming research on irisin is very promising it is still necessary to deepen in several aspects in order to clarify its full potential as a meaningful drug target in human disease states.

The Role of Aromatherapy in the Treatment of Substance Use and Co-Occurring Disorders

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cathy Skipper ◽  
Florian Birkmayer
Keyword(s):  
Essential Oils ◽  
Sleep Problems ◽  
Sensory Modality ◽  
Olfactory Receptors ◽  
The Body ◽  
Panic Attacks ◽  
Self Awareness ◽  
Nervous Symptom ◽  
The Central Nervous System

Aromatherapy can be an important tool in the treatment of substance abuse and co-occurring disorders. When used by trained specialists, essential oils are safe, simple, and effective both in alleviating symptoms as well as helping increase self-awareness and transform consciousness. Olfaction is a powerful sensory modality, and olfactory receptors have been found in nearly every tissue of the body and parts of the Central Nervous System (CNS) relevant to addiction and motivation. Essential oils are widely used to support and alleviate nervous symptom disorders such as those triggered by addiction (i.e., anxiety, sleep problems, panic attacks, depression, stress etc.). The available scientific literature supports the traditional uses of the most common essential oils in this domain and is encouraging for the continued development of these powerful plants extracts for addiction support.

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