Don't worry be healthy
Health Anxiety may increase the risk of heart disease
Anna Stavina, XX2 century, based on Guardian News: Health anxiety may increase risk of heart disease, research finds
According to the results of a new study, fit and healthy people who worry about non-existent diseases increase the risk of developing real cardiovascular diseases by 70%.
The study analyzed the medical histories of 7,000 people over 12 years. It turned out that those people who were worried about their health at the time of the start of the observation increased the likelihood of heart disease by about 70% compared to those who did not have such thoughts. In addition, scientists found that as the level of anxiety increased, the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases also increased.
Anxiety is a known risk factor for the heart. However, Norwegian scientists for the first time focused specifically on health concerns. People suffering from this form of anxiety live in the belief that they are suffering from some serious illness or will get sick with it in the near future. They often seek medical help, but doctors do not find any signs of somatic diseases.
The results of the study were published in the journal BMJ Open (Berge et al., Health anxiety and risk of ischemic heart disease: a prospective cohort study linking the Hordaland Health Study (HUSK) with the Cardiovascular Diseases in Norway (CVDNOR) project). According to the authors of the work, anxiety about health does not protect people, forcing them to undergo preventive examinations more often, but has exactly the opposite effect.
Lead author of the study, Dr. Line Iden Berge from the Department of Psychiatry at Sandviken University Hospital in Bergen, Norway, said: "We assumed that people who are concerned about their health are less likely to develop diseases because they take more care of themselves. But the results of our work have shown that instead of thinking about what is happening to your body and visiting a doctor for any reason, it is better to be diagnosed and receive treatment for an anxiety disorder."
As part of the study, the case histories of 7052 participants of a long-term research project held in the Norwegian region of Hordaland were analyzed. All the study participants were born between 1953 and 1957. They answered questions about their health, lifestyle and education, and underwent a medical examination between 1997 and 1999.
The level of health anxiety was assessed using a special scale. 10% of the sample participants who demonstrated the highest level of anxiety about this (710 people) were assessed as "concerned about their health".
The participants' heart condition was monitored until the end of 2009. All those who received treatment or died due to heart disease during the first year of participation in the program were excluded from the sample, since they could already be ill at the time of starting work.
A total of 234 (2.3%) participants had heart problems (heart attacks or angina attacks) during the follow-up. But deaths in those who were worried about their health happened twice as often as in those who were not worried about it (6% and 3%, respectively).
After the scientists took into account other concomitant risk factors, it turned out that the study participants who were worried about their health at the time of starting work were on average 73% more likely than other volunteers to encounter heart problems.
Since the study was observational, the authors were unable to draw unambiguous conclusions about the causes and consequences. The limitations of work were due to the fact that anxiety about the state of health often occurs simultaneously with other mental disorders, making it difficult to diagnose. In addition, the level of anxiety was assessed from the words of the participants themselves, which means that the researchers could not distinguish cases of concern about imaginary diseases from situations when a person really had reasons to worry.
Emily Reeve, Senior Cardiology nurse at the British Heart Foundation, said: "It is quite natural for people to worry if they feel that their health is not all right. But anxiety and stress can lead to the formation of unhealthy habits, such as smoking or poor nutrition, which, in turn, increases the risk of developing heart disease.
We didn't know before that health anxiety is a direct route to a heart attack. Now it is obvious that reducing the level of anxiety is good for health. If you feel that you are overly concerned about your condition, consult your doctor."
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17.11.2016