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 24-30 Jun Q: Are there medical studies showing the influence of spirituality on health?
"The Impact of Religion & Spirituality on Health"Dr. Jonathan Braunstein ABSTRACT Illness is a spiritual event, raising troubling questions of a transcendental nature about the meaning of life, the values in life that are most important, and the kinds of activities and relationships that should take precedence. Research suggests that clinical decision making in medical practice should consider the strength and prevalence of religious beliefs and practices among patients. Patients want physicians to take their religious commitment into account in planning their treatment.
A: 1) Over three hundred medical studies have demonstrated that in many, but not all cases, a positive association exists between spiritual or religious factors and health status.
2) A systematic review of the literature on religious commitment and physical health published in the Journal of Family Practice in 1990 found that there was a positive relationship between these two variables in 81 percent of the studies. In 15 percent of the studies there was a neutral relationship, while in 4 percent of the studies there was a negative relationship. The positive association between religious commitment and health status has been found among study populations with diverse characteristics (e.g., clinical disorder, age, sex, race or ethnicity, nationality, and religious affiliation).
3) Some religious groups (e.g., Mormons, Adventists) live longer with less disease than other religious or non-religious groups. Perhaps they do so because healthier habits and practices (no smoking, no alcohol) are strongly sanctioned, and perhaps because of extensive family support programs.
4) Numerous studies have suggested that religious commitment is associated with a lower prevalence of a number of chronic diseases, including cancer, hypertension, stroke, and cardiovascular disease. Adherence to health-promoting behaviors, such as abstaining from alcohol, red meat, and tobacco, could partially explain the low incidence of disease.
5) Epidemiological studies have often, but not always, revealed that spirituality and religion are associated with a reduced mortality from coronary artery disease, pulmonary disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and cancer. For example, it was reported that the risk of dying from coronary heart disease for men who attended religious services regularly was only 60 percent of the risk of men who attended infrequently. For women, the risk of dying from this disease was about twice as high among infrequent church attendees as among those who attended church at least weekly. Similar findings of reduced mortality rates for regular churchgoers were reported for patients with chronic pulmonary disease and those with cirrhosis.
6) Higher levels of religious commitment have been associated with higher overall well-being and happiness, lower rates of depressive symptoms and suicide, lower rates of divorce and higher rates of marital satisfaction, and lower rates of alcohol abuse and other drug abuse, including cigarette smoking and recreational drug use.
7) A randomized, controlled trial of the effects of remote, intercessory prayer for patients admitted to a coronary care unit (CCU) revealed that patients who were prayed for had lower CCU course scores than those who received the usual care, indicating a measurable improvement in medical outcomes.
BIO
Dr. Braunstein went on to become a faculty member at the University of Miami School of Medicine, a position he has held for over thirty years. For twenty-two years he also served as an associate dean of the medical school, where he directed a course on behavioral science. He coauthored and coedited Medical Applications of the Behavioral Sciences.
jonathan.braunstein@med.va.gov
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