Stress Strikes the Heart a Year Later

We all know that stress has a very negative effect on health. However, a new study shows that the effect it has on heart health may last another year.

My heart is broken “: How many times have we said this sentence after we experienced a traumatic experience, witnessing an unpleasant event or reading bad news? This is not just a way of speaking. A stress and a particularly influential situation from a psycho-emotional viewpoint puts the heart at risk to develop acute and dangerous diseases, such as heart attack and heart attack. The confirmation comes from a study conducted by a group of Finnish and Swedish researchers, from the University of Rakjavik and the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, published in the British Medical Journal.

Over 170,000 people were analyzed

The study was conducted in two huge groups of people. The first consisted of 136,637 persons who had received a clinical stress diagnosis during 1987 and 2013 after a traumatic event. The latter were formed by their brothers or sisters - individuals with similar genetic characteristics but who had not suffered stress - a total of 171,314 people. The authors, after inviting all participants to answer some questions about their present and past physical and psychological health, praised their situation through tests and exams. The goal was to see if the stress created clinically had negative effects on the heart, increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Great Dangers in the First Months

The analysis of the results found that, in fact, events that contribute from a psycho-emotional standpoint can endanger the heart. In case of research, in fact, people who had received a stress diagnosis presented an increased risk of 64% of heart problems compared with brothers and sisters who had not experienced traumatic situations. The danger of acute episodes, such as a heart attack or cardiac arrest, was higher in the first six months after the negative event, but throughout the first year the probability of experiencing cardiovascular problems in general, especially heart failure, remained higher. Effects on systems that coordinate blood coagulating, in turn, have been longer preserved. Among other things, stress has played a more important role in people under the age of 50 - at an age lower than when heart disease appears on average. Experts have concluded that stress should not be underestimated because it can have devastating consequences.

In the face of a situation that creates stress, tension, and concern - it is important not to claim anything but to adopt specific strategies, if necessary, to address experts as well. This not only protects the mind but also protects the heart.