Exploring the Connection of Spirit, Body
UC Berkeley symposium focuses on studies suggesting that strong spiritual convictions can have a positive effect on physical well-being.
By K. Connie Kang, Times Staff Writer
April 29, 2006

Many scientists are trying to quantify what religious traditions have long preached: that strong spiritual convictions can mean a healthy body.

Some recent findings are far from conclusive, but they raise intriguing questions and suggest that more research is needed. Indeed, a sense of possibility and exploration infused an international symposium this month at UC Berkeley, where researchers presented studies exploring connections between body and spirit.

One study suggested that people with HIV remain healthier longer when they believe God loves them. Conversely, when people see God as punishing them for their transgressions, they do poorly, researchers reported at "Spiritual Transformation: New Frontiers in Scientific Research."

"One's view of God is associated with disease progression," said Gail Ironson, a professor of psychology and psychiatry at the University of Miami. the rest