Anxiety Ups Heart Disease Risk
If you're one of the three in ten Americans who deal with anxiety, you may sometimes fear you're having a heart attack.
Now two recent European studies appear to confirm the role that anxiety disorders play in increasing heart disease risk or suffering a fatal cardiac event.
Heart disease is recognized as the number one cause of death for both men and women in the United Sates.
The first study involves data from 20 studies on almost 250,000 subjects and found that anxiety was tied to a 26% increased risk of heart disease, and a 48% higher risk of heart related death over the follow up period, even after adjusting for other heart disease risk factors.
The second study examined data on 50,000 Swedish men and also found anxiety problems as predictors, more than doubling the risk of future heart disease, even after controlling for known risks like high blood pressure and smoking.
While worry and stress, fear and the occasional case of nerves are a natural part of life, if these feelings are persistent, seem to be out of control and overwhelm your waking hours then you may have something more serious, an anxiety disorder.
The term is used by experts to describe a group of conditions that include generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, social anxiety disorder as well as specific phobias like heights or closed in spaces.
Experts now believe that there may be a genetic component to anxiety, and today's estimates have almost 40 million Americans coping with anxiety disorders.
When it comes to treatment, there are some natural, highly effective ways to deal with anxiety: - Aerobic exercise is a huge help, not just because it helps burn off stress but it also has beneficial effects on circulation and strengthening the heart.
Exercise also helps you maintain a healthy weight, important for a healthy heart.
- Don't smoke as this improves your odds of avoiding heart disease.
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a well-established, very effective treatment that focuses on identifying, understanding and changing thinking and thus behavior patterns.
Help comes in 12 to 16 weeks, and the techniques you learn last a lifetime.
- Acupuncture, the Chinese practice of inserting hair-thin needles into the body at special points to change the flow of energy has been increasingly shown to be effective against anxiety disorders.
- Yoga, combining physical postures, breathing, meditation and a very distinct philosophy is very effective against anxiety.
An accompanying editorial points out that the findings of both studies underscore the need for doctors to assess the emotional health of patients, just as they do physical symptoms.
The studies don't address treatment or ways to reduce anxiety by using medications, therapy, stress reduction or changes in your lifestyle, but it's clear that treating your anxiety can bring long-term benefits to body as well as mind.
According to reports doctors aren't comfortable asking patients about feelings and their everyday lives.
But doing so might help in identify those at risk for serious health problems such as cardiovascular disease.
So if you deal with anxiety, and you're concerned about your heart disease risk, you need to start a conversation with your doctor - remember you can't get help until you let your medical team know about your problem, and there are many treatments available.
The thing to know is that anxiety does not have to be a part of your life forever.
Things can be better.
Starting now.
Now two recent European studies appear to confirm the role that anxiety disorders play in increasing heart disease risk or suffering a fatal cardiac event.
Heart disease is recognized as the number one cause of death for both men and women in the United Sates.
The first study involves data from 20 studies on almost 250,000 subjects and found that anxiety was tied to a 26% increased risk of heart disease, and a 48% higher risk of heart related death over the follow up period, even after adjusting for other heart disease risk factors.
The second study examined data on 50,000 Swedish men and also found anxiety problems as predictors, more than doubling the risk of future heart disease, even after controlling for known risks like high blood pressure and smoking.
While worry and stress, fear and the occasional case of nerves are a natural part of life, if these feelings are persistent, seem to be out of control and overwhelm your waking hours then you may have something more serious, an anxiety disorder.
The term is used by experts to describe a group of conditions that include generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, social anxiety disorder as well as specific phobias like heights or closed in spaces.
Experts now believe that there may be a genetic component to anxiety, and today's estimates have almost 40 million Americans coping with anxiety disorders.
When it comes to treatment, there are some natural, highly effective ways to deal with anxiety: - Aerobic exercise is a huge help, not just because it helps burn off stress but it also has beneficial effects on circulation and strengthening the heart.
Exercise also helps you maintain a healthy weight, important for a healthy heart.
- Don't smoke as this improves your odds of avoiding heart disease.
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a well-established, very effective treatment that focuses on identifying, understanding and changing thinking and thus behavior patterns.
Help comes in 12 to 16 weeks, and the techniques you learn last a lifetime.
- Acupuncture, the Chinese practice of inserting hair-thin needles into the body at special points to change the flow of energy has been increasingly shown to be effective against anxiety disorders.
- Yoga, combining physical postures, breathing, meditation and a very distinct philosophy is very effective against anxiety.
An accompanying editorial points out that the findings of both studies underscore the need for doctors to assess the emotional health of patients, just as they do physical symptoms.
The studies don't address treatment or ways to reduce anxiety by using medications, therapy, stress reduction or changes in your lifestyle, but it's clear that treating your anxiety can bring long-term benefits to body as well as mind.
According to reports doctors aren't comfortable asking patients about feelings and their everyday lives.
But doing so might help in identify those at risk for serious health problems such as cardiovascular disease.
So if you deal with anxiety, and you're concerned about your heart disease risk, you need to start a conversation with your doctor - remember you can't get help until you let your medical team know about your problem, and there are many treatments available.
The thing to know is that anxiety does not have to be a part of your life forever.
Things can be better.
Starting now.
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