Effects of partial sleep deprivation on food consumption and food choice

Abstract Sleep deprivation alters food consumption in animals; however, little is known of the effects of partial sleep deprivation on food consumption and choice in humans. We examined 50 undergraduate students who recorded sleep quality, food consumption, and food choice in daily diaries for four days. On the second night of the study, participants were instructed to sleep for 4 h or less, which served as a partial sleep deprivation manipulation. Following sleep loss, participants reported consuming fewer calories. They also reported altering food choice following deprivation, choosing foods less for health and weight concerns. The results provide initial evidence that sleep deprivation impacts food consumption and choice, which may have subsequent health implications

Millon Behavioral Medicine Diagnostic (MBMD) Predicts Health-related Quality of Life (HrQoL) Over Time Among Men Treated for Localized Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer treatment presents multiple challenges that can negatively affect health-related quality of life (HrQoL), and which may be further compromised by maladaptive personality styles and psychological adjustment difficulties. This study examined the utility of a comprehensive psychosocial screening tool to identify psychosocial traits that prospectively predict HrQoL status among men treated for localized prostate cancer. The Millon Behavioral Medicine Diagnostic (MBMD) was administered to 66 men (mean age 68 years, 59% Caucasian) treated by either radical prostatectomy or radiotherapy along with standard measures of general and prostate cancer-specific quality of life assessed at a 12-month follow-up. Higher scores on both summary MBMD Management Guides (Adjustment Difficulties and Psych Referral) and higher scores on personality styles characterized by avoidance, dependency, depression, passive aggressiveness and self-denigration predicted lower HrQoL (β range = −.21 to −.50). Additionally, higher scores on the MBMD Depression, Tension-Anxiety and Future Pessimism scales predicted lower HrQoL. Finally, higher scores on the MBMD Intervention Fragility and Utilization Excess scale, also consistently predicted poorer mental and physical health functioning over time. These results point to the utility of the MBMD to help screen for potential impairments in mental and physical health functioning in men undergoing treatment for prostate cancer

Biobehavioral Bases of Disease Processes

There is considerable evidence that within the context of our genetic endowment, constitutional factors, sociocultural variables, and the physical environment, important psychosocial and biological processes interact to influence health outcomes. Adverse health effects can be exacerbated by such harmful behaviors as smoking, poor diet, excessive alcohol consumption, and a sedentary lifestyle. In addition, psychosocial stressors may affect disease processes through their impact on the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis. During recent years there has been increasing awareness that common pathways appear to link genetic predispositions, adverse environments, and psychosocial variables with various disease outcomes. Although the mediating variables and their interactions have not all been identified, an outline of the pathways is becoming clearer. In this chapter we focus on some of the biobehavioral pathways that may link certain psychosocial variables to coronary heart disease (CHD), several infectious diseases, and some cancers. A large body of research has examined the biobehavioral factors associated with an increased risk for CHD. Therefore, we begin by summarizing the role of specific health behaviors and psychological factors in CHD and examine some of the possible biological pathways that may be involved in the disease process. Then we proceed to examine biobehavioral pathways in the manifestation or progression of infectious diseases, including human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Finally, we review the effects of psychosocial stressors on cancer, particularly breast cancer and malignant melanoma. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved

Utility of the Millon Behavioral Medicine Diagnostic (MBMD) to Predict Adherence to Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) Medication Regimens Among HIV-Positive Men and Women

Psychosocial and behavioral factors may be strong predictors of adherence to medications in a wide variety of diseases. Newly emerging antiretroviral medications for HIV have been shown to be effective but require near perfect adherence to offer clinically significant benefits. There is currently great interest in deriving patient factors that may predict optimal medication adherence in HIV-positive persons. In this study, we examined the association of psychosocial and behavioral characteristics using the Millon Behavioral Medicine Diagnostic (MBMD; Millon, Antoni, Millon, Meagher, & Grossman, 2001 ) and adherence to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) among 117 HIV-positive individuals on HAART regimens. Specific indexes of the MBMD were associated with HAART adherence as assessed through patient interview, at baseline assessment, and at 3-month follow-up at a point after which participants had received medication adherence training. As hypothesized, the Medication Abuse scale of the MBMD was uniquely associated with overall adherence at baseline assessment and also predictive of adherence at 3-month follow-up. Additional MBMD scales were also related to overall adherence as well as specific adherence behaviors such as missed doses, following specific instructions, and overmedicating, although the Medication Abuse scale emerged as the most consistent predictor of adherence in the study. These results suggest that the MBMD can be used to predict adherence to HAART medication in a sample of HIV-positive men and women and may subsequently be used to identify those in need of adherence counseling at the point when medications are initiated

Age, gender, and setting's effect on community pharmacists' stress and confidence in the COVID-19 pandemic

Background: Reports of increased stress among healthcare workers were commonplace during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, but little is known about community pharmacists' experiences. Objective: To characterize community pharmacists' stress and confidence during the early COVID-19 pandemic and identify associated factors. Methods: Pharmacists who worked in a brick-and-mortar community pharmacy (e.g., big-box, chain, independent, or grocery pharmacies) located in Connecticut and had regular face-to-face interaction with the public were surveyed. Survey items were selected from the Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS-10) and adapted from the Emergency Risk-Communication (ERC) framework. Data were analyzed using chi-square and ANOVA. Results: Survey results suggested pharmacists experienced moderate levels of stress, as negative responses to PSS-10 items ranged between 6.4% to 43.3%, respectively. Overall, pharmacists had high rates of confidence in their ability to manage the pandemic, agreeing or strongly agreeing that they could manage their own mental health (73.1%), and communicate the risks of the pandemic (72.0%). However, 28.0% reported that they had avoided talking about the pandemic because it made them feel “stressed, or nervous.” Women and those working in chain community pharmacies tended to report significantly higher rates of stress to several items in the PSS-10 compared to men and pharmacists working in non-chain settings. Women and chain community pharmacists were also significantly more likely to report overall that they had avoided talking about public health risks because it made them feel anxious, stressed, or depressed (29.4% men vs. 34.5% women χ2 (4) > 22.6, p  8.3, p = 0.08), nor between chain and non-chain community pharmacists (71.0% chain vs. 73.7% non-chain χ2 (4) > 8.9, p = 0.32). Conclusion: Being female, younger age, and employed at a chain pharmacy were associated with higher rates of stress and lower self-confidence among community pharmacists during the COVID-19 pandemic

Millon Behavioral Medicine Diagnostic (MBMD) Predicts Health-Related Quality of Life (HrQoL) over time among men treated for localized prostate cancer

Prostate cancer treatment presents multiple challenges that can negatively affect health-related quality of life (HrQoL), and that can be further compromised by maladaptive personality styles and psychological adjustment difficulties. This study examined the utility of a comprehensive psychosocial screening tool to identify psychosocial traits that prospectively predict HrQoL status among men treated for localized prostate cancer. The Millon Behavioral Medicine Diagnostic (MBMD) was administered to 66 men (M age = 68 years, 59% White) treated by either radical prostatectomy or radiotherapy along with standard measures of general and prostate-cancer-specific quality of life assessed at a 12-month follow-up. Higher scores on both summary MBMD Management Guides (Adjustment Difficulties and Psych Referral) and higher scores on personality styles characterized by avoidance, dependency, depression, passive aggressiveness, and self-denigration predicted lower HrQoL (β range = -.21 to -.50). Additionally, higher scores on the MBMD Depression, Tension-Anxiety, and Future Pessimism scales predicted lower HrQoL. Finally, higher scores on the MBMD Intervention Fragility and Utilization Excess scale also consistently predicted poorer mental and physical health functioning over time. These results point to the utility of the MBMD to help screen for potential impairments in mental and physical health functioning in men undergoing treatment for prostate cancer

Sleep disturbance mediates the association between psychological distress and immune status among HIV-positive men and women on combination antiretroviral therapy

Objectives: This study examined the relationship between psychological distress, subjective sleep disturbance and immune status among HIV-positive men and women. Methods: Fifty-seven participants (41 men, 16 women) without AIDS-related illness and currently on combination antiretroviral therapy were recruited through community advertisement and physician referral. Participants completed the Impact of Events Scale (IES) to assess symptoms of psychological distress and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) to assess quality of sleep over the past month. T-lymphocyte subpopulations were also assessed from early morning blood samples. Results: Participants reporting greater psychological distress also reported more pronounced sleep disruption. Higher levels of distress and greater sleep disturbance were also significantly related to lower T-cytotoxic/suppressor (CD3+CD8+) cell counts. Path analysis revealed that the association between distress level and CD3+CD8+ cell counts was mediated by poorer subjective sleep quality. Conclusions: These findings suggest that psychological distress may impact upon the immune system through its effects on sleep quality