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When couples’ hearts beat together: Linkages in heart rate variability during conflict predict heightened inflammation throughout the day
- Source :
- Brain, Behavior, and Immunity. 66:e20-e21
- Publication Year :
- 2017
- Publisher :
- Elsevier BV, 2017.
-
Abstract
- An unhappy marriage increases disease and mortality risks. Discordant couples exhibit stronger links to their partner’s autonomic fluctuations–that is, stronger covariation–than do satisfied couples, but whether this physiological signature plays a role in marriage’s health effects is unknown. To examine associations between couples’ heart rate variability (HRV) covariation during conflict and their inflammation levels, 43 married couples engaged in a marital problem discussion while wearing heart rate monitors and provided blood samples throughout the day. Multilevel models treated log-transformed interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulated IL-6 and TNF-alpha, intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), and vascular adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) as outcomes, accounting for morning baseline HRV levels, age, gender, trunk fat, marital satisfaction, hostility observed during the problem discussion, and study design features. Couples whose moment-to-moment HRV changes tracked more closely together during conflict had higher serum IL-6 ( p = 0.04), LPS-stimulated IL-6 ( p = 0.02), VCAM- 1 ( p = 0.01), and at a trend level, LPS-stimulated TNF-alpha ( p = 0.06) across the day. Thought to result in part from couples’ exchange of negative emotion during disagreement, stronger HRV covariation predicted a heightened inflammatory profile beyond the roles of general marital quality and observed negativity. These data highlight partners’ conflict-related HRV linkage as a novel social-biological mechanism explaining marital discord’s connection to inflammation-related disease.
Details
- ISSN :
- 08891591
- Volume :
- 66
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Brain, Behavior, and Immunity
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi...........ba73ecc627f4a1ffb32a7afb97b41b9e