Healthy living
Body matters
Don’t go breaking my heart
Living with an unsupportive partner in a stressful relationship may be bad for your heart, according to a study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine
Researchers from University College London found that rocky relationships can increase your risk of developing heart problems by 34 per cent.
Previous studies have concluded that people who share their lives enjoy better health than singletons. In fact, it now seems that picking an unsuitable partner may be worse for your heart than not having one at all.
Back in the 1980s, researchers asked just over 9,000 British civil servants to fill out a questionnaire on their personal relationships. (6,114 were men and 2,897 were women).
Twelve years later, they revisited the volunteers to find out if any had suffered a fatal or non-fatal coronary event - this included chest pain or a heart attack.
Of the 8,499 individuals who had no heart problems to begin with, 589 reported a heart condition. Plus, they were much more likely to be in the group who said they had difficult argumentative relationships with little emotional support.
This was true even after other factors were taken into account, including negative personality traits and depression.
According to the authors, the research shows that ‘negative marital interactions are associated with depression, often in combination with reduced self-esteem and/or higher levels of anger.’
Long-term emotional upset has been shown to have a physical impact on the body, by putting extra strain on the organs and tissues, including the heart.
Cathy Ross, a cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation said: ‘This study reinforces a well-known fact that lack of emotional and psychological support may increase the risk of heart disease.
‘Identifying groups of individuals who are at risk and ensuring psychological support can make a big difference. It allows people to deal with their negative emotions.’
Tips for a healthy heart
- Try to maintain a happy relationship
- Eat a balanced diet, with plenty of fruit and vegetables
- Maintain a healthy weight and try to do at least 30 minutes exercise, five days a week
- Give up smoking
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Information on this site is for interest only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should consult your own doctor about any specific health concerns.
