New research from UT Southwestern Medical Center shows higher levels of stress 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’s risk of cardiovascular disease.
“There’s a huge mind-heart connection that we don’t emphasize enough as physicians,” she said. “We are so focused on the physical components, but really taking care of your mind can impact your physical health as well.”
The research, with data and participants from the Dallas Heart Study, 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 social determinants of health—things like housing, financial security, food, transportation, and safety that also contribute to people’s health outcomes.
“Honestly, you feel helpless in some ways when you think about these things, and for me, how they affect my patients,” she said. “[But] we found essentially that there’s no downside to assessing your patients’ 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.”
Even after considering people’s diagnoses of high blood pressure and high cholesterol, the study found more stress meant people had more plaque buildup in their arteries. The condition, called atherosclerosis, can lead to blood clots, heart attacks and strokes because arteries can’t 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’s not feeling great.
“When I’m feeling stressed, I’m not different than any of my patients,” Eleazu said. “I really have to be cognizant of how stress is affecting my health behaviors and my health attitudes.”
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’s entire identities.
“We’re extending on what prior research has shown, that chronic stress…can impact the heart,” she said. “This is a great opportunity to really use it to affect change.”
Got a tip? Email Elena Rivera at erivera@kera.org
KERA News is made possible through the generosity of our members. If you find this reporting valuable, consider making a tax-deductible gift today. Thank you.
