Physiologic and expectancy effects of stress-reducing aroma in older adults

压力暴露可能会扰乱许多生理过程，并导致各种健康问题。有效的压力管理策略可以帮助最大限度地减少或防止有害的压力后果。通过评估减压方法的有效性和了解其作用机制，我们可以确定预防压力相关疾病的最佳策略。芳香疗法是一种补充和替代医学(CAM)方法，作为一种非侵入性、易于使用、快速有效且没有重大副作用的疗法，在压力管理方面有很大的前景。虽然芳香疗法越来越多地被用于减压，但其有效性的证据很少，其作用机制也不清楚。本建议的目的是：1)评估减压芳香疗法的疗效；2)阐明其作用机制。将进行一项随机对照试验，将90名压力较大的老年人分配到三组中的一组：1)减压香气，2)可检测到的安慰剂香气，或3)不可检测到的安慰剂香气。受试者的生理应激标记将在三个实验室应激源之前、期间和之后在研究实验室访问期间进行评估。指定的香气将在实验室应激源出现前5分钟给予。主要关注的生理学指标包括脑电波、额侧不对称模式和唾液皮质醇水平。通过比较经历不同气味的人群对应激源的生理标记物的变化，将评估芳香疗法的疗效。此外，每组一半的参与者将被分配到一个质数，表明他们正在吸入一种强大的减压香气。芳香疗法的作用机制，更具体地说，预期效应的作用将通过比较以下两组之间的应激反应差异来评估：1)启动和非启动参与者；2)暴露在可察觉到的香气中的参与者和暴露在无法察觉到的香气中的参与者。我们预测芳香疗法的疗效将被证明，生理和预期效应都将被证明对芳香疗法的作用机制做出贡献。

Stress exposure might disrupt many physiologic processes and lead to various health problems. Effective stress management strategies can help minimize or prevent detrimental stress consequences. By evaluating efficacy of stress reduction approaches and understanding mechanisms underlying their actions we can determine optimal strategies for preventing stress-related disorders. Aromatherapy is a complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) approach that has a great promise for stress management as a non-invasive, easy to use, and fast-acting therapy with no major side effects. Though aromatherapy is increasingly used for stress reduction, the evidence for its efficacy is scarce, and mechanisms underlying its action are unknown. The goals of this proposal are: 1) to evaluate efficacy of stress-reducing aromatherapy and 2) elucidate its mechanism of action. A randomized controlled trial will be conducted with 90 stressed older adults allocated to one of three groups exposed to either: 1) stress-reducing aroma, 2) detectable placebo aroma, or 3) non- detectable placebo aroma. Participants' physiologic stress markers will be assessed before, during, and after three laboratory stressors during a study laboratory visit. The assigned aroma will be given 5 minutes prior to onset of laboratory stressors. The physiologic measures of primary interest will include EEG frontal lateral asymmetry patterns and salivary cortisol levels. By comparing changes in physiologic markers in response to stressors among the groups experiencing different aromas, efficacy of aromatherapy will be evaluated. Further, half of the participants in each group will be assigned to receive a prime suggesting they are inhaling a powerful stress-reducing aroma. The mechanism of aromatherapy action, more specifically, the role of expectancy effects will be evaluated by comparing differences in stress response between: 1) the primed and non-primed participants and 2) participants exposed to detectable aroma and those exposed to undetectable aroma. We predict that efficacy of aromatherapy will be demonstrated, and both physiologic and expectancy effects will be shown to contribute to the aromatherapy mechanism of action.