Add nature, art and religion to life's best anti-inflammatories

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-02/uoc--ana020315.php

Public Release: 3-Feb-2015
University of California - Berkeley

Taking in such spine-tingling wonders as the Grand Canyon, Sistine Chapel ceiling or Schubert's "Ave Maria" may give a boost to the body's defense system, according to new research from UC Berkeley.

Researchers have linked positive emotions - especially the awe we feel when touched by the beauty of nature, art and spirituality - with lower levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, which are proteins that signal the immune system to work harder.

"Our findings demonstrate that positive emotions are associated with the markers of good health," said Jennifer Stellar, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Toronto and lead author of the study, which she conducted while at UC Berkeley.

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It has long been established that a healthy diet and lots of sleep and exercise bolster the body's defenses against physical and mental illnesses.

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"That awe, wonder and beauty promote healthier levels of cytokines suggests that the things we do to experience these emotions - a walk in nature, losing oneself in music, beholding art - has a direct influence upon health and life expectancy," said UC Berkeley psychologist Dacher Keltner, a co-author of the study.

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In answer to why awe would be a potent predictor of reduced pro-inflammatory cytokines, this latest study posits that "awe is associated with curiosity and a desire to explore, suggesting antithetical behavioral responses to those found during inflammation, where individuals typically withdraw from others in their environment," Stellar said.

As for which came first - the low cytokines or the positive feelings - Stellar said she can't say for sure: "It is possible that having lower cytokines makes people feel more positive emotions, or that the relationship is bidirectional," Stellar said.