The incidences of diseases related to mental stress are increasing in Japan. Mental stress, unacknowledged for long periods, has been shown to lead to the development of a number of diseases. Thus, an index for mental stress is important to induce awareness of its presence. We focused on the relationship between cortisol and mental stress in this review. We will discuss both the usefulness and problems of cortisol as a mental stress index by summarizing the relationship between cortisol and mental stress. The present findings suggested that cortisol appears to be an adequate index for mental stress. However, there are several problems; the present group clarifies these problems and builds the comprehensive mental stress assessment systems by using saliva samples.
Stress, Psychological ; Hydrocortisone ; Review [Publication Type] ; Stress bismuth subsalicylate ; Hydrocortisone measurement

To prevent lifestyle related diseases, it is important to modify lifestyle behavior. The control of mental stress level and prevention of mental stress-related diseases have become one of the most important problems in Japan. To check mental stress level objectively during the early stage of stress-related diseases and determine appropriate coping methods, it is necessary to design a useful index for mental stress. Cortisol is a steroid hormone secreted by the adrenal cortex. This is an essential hormone to human survival, and plays a key role in adaptation to stress. In another review, we concluded that cortisol appears to be an adequate index for mental stress. However, lifestyle factors such as alcohol drinking, smoking, lack of exercise etc., are strongly associated with mental stress. Thus, in this review, we focus on the relationship between cortisol and lifestyle. The present findings suggested that lifestyle factors; smoking, alcohol drinking, exercise, sleep and nutrition are strongly associated with cortisol levels, and it may be impossible to determine whether alterations in cortisol levels are due to mental stress. It was suggested that those lifestyle effects on not only mental stress itself but also cortisol levels should be considered, when assessing mental stress by cortisol levels.
Stress, Psychological ; Life Style ; Hydrocortisone ; Review [Publication Type] ; Hydrocortisone measurement

Islam is a religion that was establishedin the 7th century by the Prophet Muhammad who was commissioned as a Messenger of God. It is also the modern or latest version of the message sent by God through some prophets, e.g. Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus. Not only is it associated with the mental aspect, however, it also impacts every part of life, from eating and sleeping to working and playing. It can be, therefore, considered a way of life.Meanwhile, one’s lifestyle has recently come to have great meaning especially in the developed countries. Methods to assess lifestyle are suggested by some authorities such as Breslow and Morimoto. Accordingly, we have tried to investigate whether Muslims, the followers of Islam, have a desirable lifestyle as defined in today’s terms, i.e. the cultural dependence of the lifestyle formation.As a result, Muslims seeking to live in accordance with the doctrine of Islam may have a relatively good lifestyle. Islam may also be associated with the relief from the mental stress and give Muslims a guideline to live a happier life.
Muslim religion ; Life Style ; Muslim population group ; seconds ; Lower case ee

Clinical cases requiring bioethical thinking and decision-making have become more complex owing to advances in medical technology and changes in family relationships. In addition, members of medical staff are asked to acquire the ability to think in terms of bioethics. For training in such ability, the use of case studies is important and essential. For a medical ethics class we created 30 cases involving communication between patients and physicians, changes in family relationships, and advanced medical technology, such as genetic diagnosis and gene therapy. We asked all second-year medical students of the Osaka University Medical School to think about these 30 cases and answer questionnaires about bioethics. We believe the case-study method is effective for training students in the ability to think in terms of bioethics.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of tomato juice drinking on the anti-mutagenicity of saliva. Methods: Subjects were 22 healthy male university students. They were divided into tomato group and control group. The tomato group drank tomato juice for 10 days. The anti-mutagenicity of saliva was measured using the umu test. Results: In the tomato group, there was a significant increase in the inhibiting capacity of saliva on the mutagenicity of AF-2 after tomato juice drinking for 10 days. This increase was, however, temporary. In the control group, there was no such change in the inhibiting capacity of saliva. Conclusions: These findings suggest the significant effect of tomato juice drinking on the anti-mutagenicity of saliva. In addition, lycopene may have played an important role in its mechanism.
Tomatoes ; Saliva ; Alcohol consumption ; g <3> ; Drinking function

Stress induced by disaster is experienced to varying degrees by all respondents, and is known to evoke psychophysiological reactions. In this study, we investigated the relationships between earthquake-related life events and posttraumatic stress symptoms. A total of 380 adults were surveyed one year after the 1995 Hanshin-Awaji earthquake in Japan. The questionnaire included items concerning earthquake-related life events, emotional support and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. As a result, after controlling for demographic variables, earthquake-related life events were significantly related to the grade of posttraumatic stress and its three components: re-experience, avoidance and arousal, in both male and female subjects. Male subjects who currently had lower emotional support showed higher scores of posttraumatic stress and arousal. In conclusion, a higher experience of earthquake-related life events appears to be an important risk factor for development of poor mental health status following an earthquake disaster.
Earthquakes ; Life events ; seconds ; Stress bismuth subsalicylate ; Stress

Objective: For 1,361 victims of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, to evaluate the usefulness of seismic intensity information for mental health activities, we examined the quantitative relationship between experienced seismic intensity and earthquake-related life events or mental health. Methods: Questionnaires were administered concerning seismic intensity, life events and mental health to the victims. Results: The incidence of serious life events, such as death of a close family member and mental disorders were higher in areas of high seismic intensity than in low-intensity areas. Victims who experienced intensity 7 (Japan Meteorological Agency) scored 11 or more on the Modified Mercalli (MM) scale, perceived more depressive symptoms [odds ratio (OR) 2.11, 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 1.49−2.98)] and lower mental health status (OR 1.87, 95% CI 1.34−2.61) than those who suffered intensity 4 or less, who scored 7 or less on MM scale after controlling for various sociodemographic factors. Conclusions: Higher seismic intensity was associated with each severe life event and ill mental health among earthquake victims.
Mental Health ; Earthquakes ; Life events ; seconds ; Large

The acute effect of a single−dose of caffeine on the P300 event−related brain potential (ERP) was assessed in a study using a repeatedly presented auditory oddball button−press task. A dose (5mg/kg body−weight) of either caffeine or placebo lactose, dissolved in a cup of decaffeinated coffee, was administered double−blindly to coffee drinkers who had abstained from coffee for 24hrs, with the presentation order of the sessions counterbalanced and separated by 2−4 weeks. The caffeine−treatment condition demonstrated a smaller P300 amplitude and a shorter latency overall than the placebo treatment condition. The mean P300 amplitude value difference (caffeine minus placebo) increased with the successive trial blocks. Caffeine ingestion appears to yield a lower resource−consumption and a net increase in allocating attention resources for task performance across repeated measurements.
Caffeine ; Acute ; Caffeine Measurement ; Placebos ; Measured