The Health Consequences of Cultural Consonance: Cultural Dimensions of Lifestyle, Social Support, and Arterial Blood Pressure in an African American Community

2000 ◽  
Vol 102 (2) ◽  
pp. 244-260 ◽  
Author(s):  
William W. Dressler ◽  
James R. Bindon
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Blood Pressure ◽  
African American ◽  
Arterial Blood Pressure ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
African American Community ◽  
Health Consequences ◽  
Cultural Consonance ◽  
Arterial Blood

scholarly journals Social and cultural dimensions of hypertension in Brazil: a review

2000 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 303-315 ◽  
Author(s):  
William W. Dressler ◽  
José Ernesto dos Santos
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Cultural Context ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Cultural Models ◽  
Cultural Influences ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Cultural Consonance ◽  
Arterial Blood ◽  
Access To Medical Care ◽  
The Individual

Elevated arterial blood pressure varies substantially in relation to social and cultural variables. Early work on acculturation, socioeconomic status, and blood pressure documented this variation, which could not be explained entirely by conventional factors such as diet, physical activity, or access to medical care. These findings stimulated the development of a model of stress and disease. The stress model emphasizes social and psychological factors that are perceived by individuals to be stressful, as well as factors that help individuals to respond to those stressors. Conventional stress models are, however, problematic because the primary emphasis is on individual perception, with little consideration of the social and cultural context in which stress occurs. This paper describes a complementary model of social and cultural influences on disease risk, placing greater emphasis on how individuals are able to approximate, in their own behaviors, shared cultural models of life, referred to as "cultural consonance". Findings from research in Brazil indicate that the higher an individual's cultural consonance, the lower his or her blood pressure. These results indicate the importance of linking different levels of analysis - the cultural, the individual, and the biological - to understand disease risk.

Cultural consonance and arterial blood pressure in urban Brazil

2005 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
pp. 527-540 ◽  
Author(s):  
William W. Dressler ◽  
Mauro C. Balieiro ◽  
Rosane P. Ribeiro ◽  
José Ernesto Dos Santos
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Arterial Blood Pressure ◽  
Cultural Consonance ◽  
Arterial Blood

Cardiovascular Effects of Micromeria graeca (L.) Benth. ex Rchb in Normotensive and Hypertensive Rats

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (8) ◽  
pp. 1253-1261
Author(s):  
Mourad Akdad ◽  
Mohamed Eddouks
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Cardiovascular System ◽  
Arterial Blood Pressure ◽  
Antihypertensive Activity ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Hypertensive Rats ◽  
Vasorelaxant Effect ◽  
Arterial Blood

Aims: The present study was performed in order to analyze the antihypertensive activity of Micromeria graeca (L.) Benth. ex Rchb. Background: Micromeria graeca (L.) Benth. ex Rchb is an aromatic and medicinal plant belonging to the Lamiaceae family. This herb is used to treat various pathologies such as cardiovascular disorders. Meanwhile, its pharmacological effects on the cardiovascular system have not been studied. Objective: The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of aqueous extract of aerial parts of Micromeria graeca (AEMG) on the cardiovascular system in normotensive and hypertensive rats. Methods: In this study, the cardiovascular effect of AEMG was evaluated using in vivo and in vitro investigations. In order to assess the acute effect of AEMG on the cardiovascular system, anesthetized L-NAME-hypertensive and normotensive rats received AEMG (100 mg/kg) orally and arterial blood pressure parameters were monitored during six hours. In the sub-chronic study, rats were orally treated for one week, followed by blood pressure assessment during one week of treatment. Blood pressure was measured using a tail-cuff and a computer-assisted monitoring device. In the second experiment, isolated rat aortic ring pre-contracted with Epinephrine (EP) or KCl was used to assess the vasorelaxant effect of AEMG. Results: Oral administration of AEMG (100 mg/kg) provoked a decrease of arterial blood pressure parameters in hypertensive rats. In addition, AEMG induced a vasorelaxant effect in thoracic aortic rings pre-contracted with EP (10 μM) or KCl (80 mM). This effect was attenuated in the presence of propranolol and methylene blue. While in the presence of glibenclamide, L-NAME, nifedipine or Indomethacin, the vasorelaxant effect was not affected. Conclusion: This study showed that Micromeria graeca possesses a potent antihypertensive effect and relaxes the vascular smooth muscle through β-adrenergic and cGMP pathways.

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