Fundamentals of Health Neuroscience

1st Edition - August 1, 2024
Authors: Yi-Yuan Tang, Rongxiang Tang
Language: English
Paperback ISBN:
9 7 8 - 0 - 4 4 3 - 1 5 6 0 2 - 1
eBook ISBN:
9 7 8 - 0 - 4 4 3 - 1 5 6 0 3 - 8

Health Neuroscience is a new interdisciplinary field encompassing research from cognitive, affective, and social neuroscience, health psychology, physical and mental health, and… Read more

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Health Neuroscience is a new interdisciplinary field encompassing research from cognitive, affective, and social neuroscience, health psychology, physical and mental health, and science of behavior change. This new field addresses the longstanding gap among neuroscience, health, and behavior change within the context of health promotion.

Fundamentals of Health Neuroscience explores key topics and research, including basic principles, psychological and neural processes, brain and body interactions, and gene x brain x environment interactions. This book also covers brain-based precision prevention and intervention strategies for health decisions and promotion across the lifespan. Chapters integrate the latest research findings and explores several key topics, such as: How does the brain serve both as a predictor and an outcome of health? How can people improve self-control and achieve physical and mental health effectively? What does brain plasticity and resilience tell us about optimal learning, performance, and development throughout our life? How is the sense of meaning in life affected by dopamine and reward systems in the brain?

1. Introduction

Keywords
Health neuroscience
Brain serves as a predictor of health
Brain serves as an outcome of health
Brainebody interaction and health
Science of behavior change
Integrative health model
Promoting integrative health through evidence-based integrative bodyemind interventions
Health neuroscience methodologies
EEG and fMRI neurofeedback
Individual differences and precision health
Individualized real-time fMRI neurofeedback
Precision nutrition
An overview of chapters
Conclusions and future directions
References

2. Brain development and health

Keywords
Brain cortices and development
Brain structural development
Brain functional development
Brain development and disorders
Brain development, environment, and experience
Socioeconomic status
Early-life adversity and stress
Environmental enrichment
Brain development and cognitive health
Brain development and mental health
Prevention and intervention for brain development and health
Summary and discussion
Outstanding questions
References

3. Genetics, brain, and health

Keywords
Genes and alleles
Methodological approaches for studying genes
Genes and brain
Genes and health
Cognitive health
Mental health
Epigenetics and intergenerational transmission
Epigenetics and health
Genetic mutations and health
Summary and discussion
Outstanding questions
References

4. Stress response, resilience, and brain

Keywords
The stress, stress symptoms, and brain
Stress and neuroinflammation
Neuroinflammation and interventions
Dual-hormone modulation
Subjective and objective stress assessments
Stress resilience
Components of stress resilience
How to build stress resilience
Outstanding questions
References

5. Brain, body, and health

Keywords
Theories and mechanisms of mindebody interaction
Gutebrain axis
Gutebrain axis and early development
Gutebrain axis and stress
Gutebrain axis in diseases
Brain and heart connection
Brain and body connection
Brain and body aging
Brain and body aging, and other factors
Summary and discussion
Outstanding questions
References

6. Mindset, social brain, and health

Keywords
Mindsets and health
Mindset intervention procedure
Social support, loneliness, and health
Learning is enhanced by social interaction
Social isolation, loneliness, and health
Brain, isolation, and loneliness
Coping with social rejection and loneliness
Technology, human behavior, and health
Technology changes our brain/mind and lifestyle
Technology changes our relationships and ourselves
The challenge of being alone
Sensory overload
How to cope with an overload of information?
The balance between technology and human beings
Outstanding questions
References

7. Health behavior change and habit formation

Keywords
Science of behavior change
Stages of change model
Social cognitive theory
Dual-process theory
Health behavior change
Habit and habit formation
Why do we need habits?
Why bad habits are difficult to break?
Understanding habits and underlying brain mechanisms
Habits and unconscious processes
Automaticity, habits, and effortless training
Attention habit and behavior change
Health behavior interventions
Promoting behavior change and habit formation through mindfulness practice
How to practice mindfulness efficiently?
Predictive coding, interoception, and behavior change
Outstanding questions
References

8. Brain plasticity for health promotion

Keywords
Theories and mechanisms of brain plasticity
Neurogenesis in the adult brain
Learning, memory, and brain plasticity in animals
Experience-dependent brain structural plasticity in human
Experience-dependent brain functional plasticity in human
Brain plasticity, injuries, and diseases
Interventions to promote brain plasticity and health
Summary and discussion
Outstanding questions
References

9. Brain health and aging

Keywords
Aging and basic mechanisms
Cognitive and brain aging
Pathological aging in cognition and brain
Modifiable risk factors for dementia
Superaging and superagers
Advances in clinical diagnosis and treatment of dementia
Summary and discussion
Outstanding questions
References

10. Preventions and interventions for health promotion

Keywords
Health promotion
Prevention and interventions
Physical exercise or activity
Fascial manipulation technique
Mindfulness meditation
The 10,000-hour rule
Effortful and effortless training
Bodifulness (bodyfulness)
Attention balance state
Learning effortless strategy from the beginning
Reducing polysubstance use using mindfulness intervention
Neuromodulation
Neurofeedback
State training and network training
Outstanding questions
References

11. Individual differences and health

Keywords
The study of individual differences
Individual differences in personality and health
Individual differences in states and health
Individual differences in brain and health
Individual differences in disease and health
Summary and discussion
Outstanding questions
References

12. Integrative health model

Keywords
Current status of conventional medicine
Complementary and alternative medicine
Self-care
Self-care domains and practices
From allopathic medicine to integrative medicine
Self-control in self-care
Self-balance
Self-care activities
Outstanding questions
References

Index

Yi-Yuan Tang

Dr. Tang has an interdisciplinary and cross-cultural background, experience, and expertise in the areas of human neuroscience (e.g., cognitive, affective, social, cultural, and behavioral), health psychology, health science, prevention, and intervention science.

His research mainly focuses on how environment or experience (stress, learning, training, culture) affects self-control, emotion regulation, stress resilience, and decision-making and their interaction with genes to influence health and well-being. Additionally, he investigates both conscious and unconscious changes in healthy behavior, habits, and lifestyles. His translational research focuses on the development and implementation of evidence-based interventions to prevent and ameliorate behavioral problems and mental disorders such as ADHD, learning disabilities, substance use, mood disorders, and stress-related disorders over the lifespan. Dr. Tang’s interdisciplinary research has received support from NIH, the Office of Naval Research/Department of Defense, and private foundations including the John Templeton Foundation and James Bower Foundation. He has published 9 books and over 360 peer-reviewed articles in different academic journals, including Nature Reviews Neuroscience (NRN), Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Trends in Cognitive Sciences (TiCS), Neuroimage, and Human Brain Mapping.

Affiliations and expertise

Professor of Health Neuroscience and Prevention Science, Arizona State University, USA

Rongxiang Tang

Dr. Tang is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, and the Center for Behavior Genetics of Aging at the University of California, San Diego. She received her Ph.D. in cognitive neuroscience at Washington University in St. Louis, where she studied the neural mechanisms of cognitive control and how psychological interventions improve cognitive, psychological, and mental health using neuroimaging techniques, genetic and psychosocial methods. She also received an NIH Ruth L. Kirschstein Predoctoral Individual National Research Service Award and NIH’s Mentored Research Scientist Development Award for this work. Dr. Tang’s research encompasses topics from cognitive, clinical, and health neuroscience. In particular, her research focuses on 1) understanding the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive, psychological, and mental health in young and older adulthood, 2) examining individual difference factors (e.g., personality, genetics, and environment) contributing to inter-individual variability in cognitive, psychological, and mental health, as well as trajectories of brain and cognitive aging, 3) investigating and developing psychological interventions to improve health and ameliorate aging-related decline in health and brain functions. Dr. Tang has published over 30 peer-reviewed journal articles on cognitive, clinical, and health neuroscience and co-authored the Elsevier book The Neuroscience of Meditation: Understanding Individual Differences.

Affiliations and expertise

Department of Psychiatry, The University of California, San Diego, USA