From psychological moments to mortality: A multidisciplinary synthesis on heart rate variability spanning the continuum of time

[摘要] Heart rate variability (HRV) indexes functioning of the vagus nerve, arguably the most important nerve in the human body. The Neurovisceral Integration Model has provided a structural framework for understanding brain body integration, highlighting the role of the vagus in adaptation to the environment. In the present paper, we emphasise a temporal framework in which HRV may be considered a missing, structural link between psychological moments and mortality, a proposal we label as Neurovisceral Integration Across a Continuum of Time (or NIACT). This new framework places neurovisceral integration on a dimension of time, highlighting implications for lifespan development and healthy aging, and helping to bridge the gap between clearly demarcated disciplines such as psychology and epidemiology. The NIACT provides a novel framework, which conceptualizes how everyday psychological moments both affect and are affected by the vagus in ways that have long-term effects on mortality risk. We further emphasize that a longitudinal approach to understanding change in vagal function over time may yield novel scientific insights and important public health outcomes.

[发布日期] 2017-12-01

[关键词] Health psychology;Psychiatry;Epidemiology;Public health;Psychophysiology;Autonomic nervous system;Heart rate variability;Psychophysiological flexibility;Resilience;Emotion;Mood;Inflammation;Biomarkers;Atherosclerosis;Morbidity;Mortality;Polyvagal theory;Neurovisceral integration model;Mental health;Physical health