Stress is one of the most common complaints one hears from patients. More and more evidence suggests a relationship between the risk of cardiovascular disease and environmental and psychosocial factors. These factors include job stress, relationship problems, social isolation as well as personality traits.
Developing an optimistic attitude and resilience is the way to beat stress. Of 999 people, men and women ages 65 to 85, researchers in the Netherlands found that optimistic participants had lower rates of heart disease and were 77% less likely to die of cardiovascular diseases.
Smoking, obesity, physical inactivity, diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol and family history are known risk factors for coronary heart disease. But stress plays a role too.
Studies have shown that long-term stress triggers an unhealthy lifestyle. Chronic stress can result in unhealthy habits such as smoking, being sedentary, overusing alcohol and eating poorly or overeating. These, in turn, increase chances of developing hypertension, diabetes and high cholesterol. So, over time, elevated levels of stress can cause you to acquire risk factors that lead to heart disease. Chronic stress exposes your body to unhealthy, persistently elevated levels of stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol, which can be detrimental for the heart. Acute stress can cause a sudden increase in the blood pressure, plaque rupture or formation of blood clots, leading to a heart attack.
The good news is that stress doesn't arise from a particular incident or circumstance, but from our perception of and reaction to it. Understand that it's not just stress but your response to it that determines how your health will be affected. Some people react to stress with feelings of anger, guilt, fear, hostility and anxiety that could make things worse. Others may face life's challenges with greater ease. Be in control of a situation so you know what triggers your stress, and work to abate the feelings so the stress is not prolonged.
Take out time to unwind in whatever way that works for you-go for a walk, listen to music, catch up with friends, meditate. Managing stress makes sense for your overall health.
Developing an optimistic attitude and resilience is the way to beat stress. Of 999 people, men and women ages 65 to 85, researchers in the Netherlands found that optimistic participants had lower rates of heart disease and were 77% less likely to die of cardiovascular diseases.
How stress impacts you?
It is not known how exactly stress increases the risk of heart disease. Whether stress by itself is an independent risk factor or whether stress affects other risk factors and behaviours is yet to be ascertained.Smoking, obesity, physical inactivity, diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol and family history are known risk factors for coronary heart disease. But stress plays a role too.
Studies have shown that long-term stress triggers an unhealthy lifestyle. Chronic stress can result in unhealthy habits such as smoking, being sedentary, overusing alcohol and eating poorly or overeating. These, in turn, increase chances of developing hypertension, diabetes and high cholesterol. So, over time, elevated levels of stress can cause you to acquire risk factors that lead to heart disease. Chronic stress exposes your body to unhealthy, persistently elevated levels of stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol, which can be detrimental for the heart. Acute stress can cause a sudden increase in the blood pressure, plaque rupture or formation of blood clots, leading to a heart attack.
Warning signs from your body
When you are exposed to long periods of stress, your body gives warning signals that something is wrong. Don't ignore these physical, cognitive, emotional and behavioural warning signs. They tell you that you need to slow down. If you continue to be stressed and don't give your body a break, you are likely to develop health problems. Remember, unlike other risk factors for heart disease, it is not possible to measure stress in a precise way.The good news is that stress doesn't arise from a particular incident or circumstance, but from our perception of and reaction to it. Understand that it's not just stress but your response to it that determines how your health will be affected. Some people react to stress with feelings of anger, guilt, fear, hostility and anxiety that could make things worse. Others may face life's challenges with greater ease. Be in control of a situation so you know what triggers your stress, and work to abate the feelings so the stress is not prolonged.
Take out time to unwind in whatever way that works for you-go for a walk, listen to music, catch up with friends, meditate. Managing stress makes sense for your overall health.
Status of India
In the Indian pool of heart patients, almost every second patient has high blood pressure, every fourth has diabetes and every fifth had plaque deposits in hisher arteries.
Ongoing pan-india study is being done by the American collage of Cardiology's new India chapter indicate, of the 85295 patients studied over 26 months, 60836 had some form of heart disease.
Average age of heart patient is 52, which is lower by 10 years in the west. Of the patients surveyed 21.5% had diabetes, and 20% have some form of heart block. Most alarming is the 42% of them have hypertension.
In the backdrop of World Heart Day on Monday, the ACC data underlines that the average age of a heart patient in India is 52 years. In the backdrop of World Heart Day on Monday , the ACC data underlines that the average age of a heart patient in India is 52 years. “If one looks at ACC's American registry , the average age is much higher in the seventies. Clearly, Indians get hit with heart disease much earlier,'' said Dr Ganesh Kumar, cardiologist at Hiranandani Hospital in Powai and vice-chairperson of the study .
Are you doing your part to relax? If not, please start.
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