Health psychology is a specialty that focuses on how biology, psychology, behavior, and social factors influence health and disease. Other terms, including medical psychology and behavioral medicine, are sometimes used interchangeably with the term health psychology.
Health and illness are influenced by a wide variety of factors. Although contagious and hereditary diseases are common, many behavioral and psychological factors can affect overall physical well-being and various diseases. The field of health psychology focuses on health promotion, as well as the prevention and treatment of disease. The field of health psychology emerged in the 1970s to address a rapidly changing problem. Today, the average life expectancy is about 80 years, and the main cause of death is chronic diseases, often related to lifestyle.
- Health psychology helps to overcome these changes in health. By looking at the patterns of behavior that underlie illness and death, psychologists hope to help people live better and healthier lives.
- What makes health psychology unique? Because health psychology emphasizes how behavior affects health, it is well positioned to help people change behaviors that promote health and well-being.
For example, although most people realize that a diet high in sugar is not good for their health, many people continue to engage in this behavior regardless of the possible short- and long-term consequences. Psychologists look at the psychological factors that influence these health choices and explore ways to motivate people to make better health choices. 3 In particular, in recent years, mortality rates have declined for all major causes except suicide; life expectancy is now 78.8 years; and yet every hour about 83 Ukrainians die of heart disease and stroke. More than a quarter of these deaths are preventable. Cancer is second; chronic lower respiratory diseases, primarily chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis, are followed by drug poisoning, including overdoses, and then fatal falls among an increasingly older population.
- Current issues in health psychology. Psychologists work with individual patients to reduce risk factors, improve overall health, and reduce disease. They provide services in areas such as:
- Reducing stress
- Weight management
- Smoking cessation
- Improving daily nutrition
- Reducing risky sexual behavior
- Preventing diseases
- Understanding the consequences of the disease
- Improved recovery
- Teaching coping skills