CHAPTER  8

Psychological Factors and Physical Illness

As subspecialties of behavioral medicine and clinical psychology, health psychology explores the many ways that psychological factors influence medical conditions. The field has had a considerable impact on virtually the entire range of clinical medicine. One category of conditions in which health psychology's influence has been realized is the eating disorders. Chapter 8, therefore, opens with the clinical picture, etiology, and treatment of the eating disorders - anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa being the most common. This is followed by a discussion of the interrelationships between physical health and attitudes, lifestyle, and coping resources. Next, the chapter explores the functioning of both the autonomic nervous system and the immune system and how these are influenced by psychological factors. In essence, the degree of stress a person is experiencing influences the efficiency with which the individual resists the virus and how rapidly he or she recovers. Then, the chapter reviews specific data on the clinical picture and treatment of diseases such as essential hypertension and coronary heart disease, as well as recurrent headaches. Finally, general etiological issues and methods of treatment are considered.

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