Department of Psychological Science, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA.
Department of Psychology, Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Psychophysiology. 2021 Jul;58(7):e13804. doi: 10.1111/psyp.13804. Epub 2021 Mar 15.
Darwin emphasized the intimate relationship between the brain and the heart over 150 years ago. Healthy aging is associated with significant changes in both the brain and the heart. The changes between these, the two most important organs of the body, are linked via the vagus nerve. In this review, we examine the normative changes with aging and the effect that stress may have on how the brain-heart connection changes with age. We provide a framework based on the concept of neurovisceral integration and propose that stress regulation is emotion regulation. As such, studies that have investigated emotion regulation may yield insights into successful stress regulation that helps protect people from age-related decline. In addition, interventions that improve brain health also improve heart health and vice versa. We conclude by noting that significant sex and ethnic differences exist but that future studies are needed to more fully explicate how they may moderate the associations between stress and aging.
达尔文在 150 多年前就强调了大脑和心脏之间的密切关系。健康的衰老与大脑和心脏都发生显著变化有关。这两个身体最重要的器官之间的变化通过迷走神经相连。在这篇综述中，我们检查了与衰老相关的正常变化，以及压力可能对大脑与心脏之间的连接随年龄变化的影响。我们提供了一个基于神经内脏整合概念的框架，并提出压力调节就是情绪调节。因此，研究情绪调节的研究可能会深入了解成功的压力调节，从而帮助人们免受与年龄相关的衰退。此外，改善大脑健康的干预措施也能改善心脏健康，反之亦然。我们最后指出，存在显著的性别和种族差异，但需要进一步的研究来更充分地阐明它们如何调节压力和衰老之间的关系。
