New research from UT Southwestern Medical Center shows contribute to worse heart health over time.
Cardiology fellow and lead author of the study Dr. Ijeoma Eleazu said she wanted to understand how stress contributed to people鈥檚 risk of cardiovascular disease.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a huge mind-heart connection that we don鈥檛 emphasize enough as physicians,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e are so focused on the physical components, but really taking care of your mind can impact your physical health as well.鈥�
The research, with data and participants from the , measured stress in a few different ways, including psychosocial, financial and neighborhood stress. Racial and ethnic discrimination, along with a lack of health insurance, contributed to higher levels of stress.
Eleazu said these stress measurements are based on 鈥攖hings like housing, financial security, food, transportation, and safety that also contribute to people鈥檚 health outcomes.
鈥淗onestly, you feel helpless in some ways when you think about these things, and for me, how they affect my patients,鈥� she said. 鈥淸But] we found essentially that there鈥檚 no downside to assessing your patients鈥� stress, for the health care provider. You should ask about these things. You should identify folks who are at risk for poor cardiovascular disease outcomes.鈥�
Even after considering people鈥檚 diagnoses of high blood pressure and high cholesterol, the study found more stress meant people had more plaque buildup in their arteries. The condition, , can lead to blood clots, heart attacks and strokes because arteries can鈥檛 get enough blood to the rest of the body.
Eleazu said when people are more stressed, they engage in behaviors that might increase their risk for heart disease, like not exercising or eating well. She said she does the same thing when she鈥檚 not feeling great.
鈥淲hen I鈥檓 feeling stressed, I鈥檓 not different than any of my patients,鈥� Eleazu said. 鈥淚 really have to be cognizant of how stress is affecting my health behaviors and my health attitudes.鈥�
Stress was also higher among participants who were younger, female, Black, Hispanic/Latinx and who had lower income levels.
Eleazu said this shows that higher stress impacts minority groups more intensely, and hopes the research leads to stress management tools that consider people鈥檚 entire identities.
鈥淲e鈥檙e extending on what prior research has shown, that chronic stress鈥an impact the heart,鈥� she said. 鈥淭his is a great opportunity to really use it to affect change.鈥�
Got a tip? Email Elena Rivera at erivera@kera.org
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