Major Financial Stress Dramatically Increases Your Risk of a Heart Attack | By Benjamin Ryan | Virtually Modern Medicine
Under the cloud of money worries? Adding insult to injury, this emotional predicament could make you considerably more likely to suffer a heart attack according to new research out of South Africa.
Scientists have long known that psychological factors are intertwined with heart attack risk—specifically what is known as acute myocardial infarction. To further investigate these connections, South African researchers studied 106 people diagnosed with such a heart attack at a large public hospital in Johannesburg. They compared these individuals with a control group of 106 patients receiving medical care at the same hospital who did not have a heart attack and were matched for age, sex and race.
All of the study participants completed questionnaires about any depression, stress, work-related stress and financial-based stress they experienced during the previous month.
The researchers presented their findings at the 18th Annual Congress of the South African Heart Association, which was held between November 9 and 12 in Johannesburg.
The most significant proportion of the study participants were between 51 and 60 years old, with 39 percent of those in the heart attack group and 31 percent of the controls falling into this age bracket. Among those who suffered a heart attack, 47 percent were white and 25 percent were of Indian descent.
To stratify the participants based on their level of financial stress, study’s investigators determined these individuals were under: no financial stress if they reported coping well financially; mild financial stress if they were coping financially but said they needed additional financial support; moderate financial stress if despite having an income they remained under financial distress; and under significant financial stress if they lacked an income and also struggled to meet their basic needs.
Clearly those who experienced a heart attack were a very stressed-out group, with 96 percent of them reporting any level of stress and 40 percent saying they weathered severe stress. As for depression, those with any form of the mental health condition, from mild to severe, were three times more likely to experience a heart attack compared with those not suffering from depression.
Work- and financial-based stress had particularly strong associations with heart attack risk among the study members. Compared with those reporting minimal or no work stress, the participants suffering from moderate or severe stress related to their profession were almost six times more likely to sustain a heart attack. Experiencing severe financial stress boosted the heart attack risk by a whopping 13-fold.
The study authors found no link between leisure and work-based activities and the risk of a heart attack.
Experts at the conference stressed the importance on focusing on modifying psychological factors in order to prevent heart attacks.
“Our study suggests that psychosocial aspects are important risk factors for acute myocardial infarction,” said the study’s lead author, Denishan Govender, an associate lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. “Often patients are counselled about stress after a heart attack but there needs to be more emphasis prior to an event. Few doctors ask about stress, depression or anxiety during a general physical and this should become routine practice, like asking about smoking. Just as we provide advice on how to quit smoking, patients need information on how to fight stress.”
“We know that the depressed cardiac patient is at greater risk,” reflected David Jankelow, a cardiologist and the chairman of the South African heart health conference. “We as clinicians need to identify them much earlier, so that they can be referred for appropriate intervention. Cardiac rehabilitation together with counselling and reassurance will play an important role as well.”
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-11/esoc-sfs110717.php
Tags: #HeartAttack #FinancialStress #VirtuallyModernMedicine @Pharmative
Under the cloud of money worries? Adding insult to injury, this emotional predicament could make you considerably more likely to suffer a heart attack according to new research out of South Africa.
Scientists have long known that psychological factors are intertwined with heart attack risk—specifically what is known as acute myocardial infarction. To further investigate these connections, South African researchers studied 106 people diagnosed with such a heart attack at a large public hospital in Johannesburg. They compared these individuals with a control group of 106 patients receiving medical care at the same hospital who did not have a heart attack and were matched for age, sex and race.
All of the study participants completed questionnaires about any depression, stress, work-related stress and financial-based stress they experienced during the previous month.
The researchers presented their findings at the 18th Annual Congress of the South African Heart Association, which was held between November 9 and 12 in Johannesburg.
The most significant proportion of the study participants were between 51 and 60 years old, with 39 percent of those in the heart attack group and 31 percent of the controls falling into this age bracket. Among those who suffered a heart attack, 47 percent were white and 25 percent were of Indian descent.
To stratify the participants based on their level of financial stress, study’s investigators determined these individuals were under: no financial stress if they reported coping well financially; mild financial stress if they were coping financially but said they needed additional financial support; moderate financial stress if despite having an income they remained under financial distress; and under significant financial stress if they lacked an income and also struggled to meet their basic needs.
Clearly those who experienced a heart attack were a very stressed-out group, with 96 percent of them reporting any level of stress and 40 percent saying they weathered severe stress. As for depression, those with any form of the mental health condition, from mild to severe, were three times more likely to experience a heart attack compared with those not suffering from depression.
Work- and financial-based stress had particularly strong associations with heart attack risk among the study members. Compared with those reporting minimal or no work stress, the participants suffering from moderate or severe stress related to their profession were almost six times more likely to sustain a heart attack. Experiencing severe financial stress boosted the heart attack risk by a whopping 13-fold.
The study authors found no link between leisure and work-based activities and the risk of a heart attack.
Experts at the conference stressed the importance on focusing on modifying psychological factors in order to prevent heart attacks.
“Our study suggests that psychosocial aspects are important risk factors for acute myocardial infarction,” said the study’s lead author, Denishan Govender, an associate lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. “Often patients are counselled about stress after a heart attack but there needs to be more emphasis prior to an event. Few doctors ask about stress, depression or anxiety during a general physical and this should become routine practice, like asking about smoking. Just as we provide advice on how to quit smoking, patients need information on how to fight stress.”
“We know that the depressed cardiac patient is at greater risk,” reflected David Jankelow, a cardiologist and the chairman of the South African heart health conference. “We as clinicians need to identify them much earlier, so that they can be referred for appropriate intervention. Cardiac rehabilitation together with counselling and reassurance will play an important role as well.”
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-11/esoc-sfs110717.php
Tags: #HeartAttack #FinancialStress #VirtuallyModernMedicine @Pharmative
Interesting article Ben.