Emerging to the forefront of medical research, psychoneuroimmunology studies are revealing a significant amount of useful information related to stress, inflammation, pro-inflammatory cytokines and relationship to emotion. Long ignored by the medical community, practices of meditation, stress reduction and mindful self-acceptance are beginning to be acknowledged as part of prescribed medical care as researched at UCLA. If interventions from positive psychology, such as cultivating emotion- focused coping could be added as a tool it is possible it could help to increase our functionality and longevity.
More recent studies are indicating that emotions play a role in diseases such as cancer have an impact on prognosis. Positive affect has been shown to have a correlation with decreased morbidity and mortality in individuals with a cancer diagnosis. Experiencing positive emotion might lead to a reduced level of inflammatory reactivity. Psychological stress has been known to be associated with increased disease, and there may be a link between stress, negative emotion and persistent elevations in inflammation, related to causing illness.
How can you create positive emotion in your life? One way is to watch a “happy” video each morning. If only for 5 minutes, watch something you enjoy-a funny video, a beautiful nature scene or puppies playing…Start your day off with positive emotion for your health!