The Link Between Stress And Heart Disease May Lie In The Brain

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Link: https://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2017/01/12/the-link-between-stress-and-heart-disease-may-lie-in-the-brain/#1abdd101f67f

Summary: This article is about the relationship between stress and the heart. A recent study monitored individuals heart and brain activity over a few years and found a new connection between heart health and the brain. The observers found that individuals with higher brain activity in the Amygdala were more likely to have heart related issues such as stroke and heart attacks. Stress levels were also connected to inflammation of  the arteries in a study conducted on individuals with chronic stress disorders those who rated themselves as high stress had both inflamed arteries and increased Amygdala activity.

Reflection: I think this article is relevant to our class in connection to the topics of emotion and emotion regulation. Stress is something that every individual experiences in their lives but it is also a very serious issue that not everyone knows how to effectively deal with.  It is very important to be able to manage stress in your life or it could quite literally end up killing you. As the article mentioned stress has become something over the recent years that has been getting more attention but it still is not seen as a huge issue by many. People need to take stress more seriously because heart disease can be very serious or fatal if precautions against it are not taken.

Comments

  1. UnknownMay 3, 2017 at 12:23 AM

    I think its important to always look at research found on the heart. It is known that stress can cause heart problems, but more research into this area may open up doors for other researchers to look at medication managements for people who are currently having heart problems. it connects to our class very well to, looking at the amygdala and looking at how our emotions can be paired with heart health.

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  2. UnknownMay 3, 2017 at 3:47 AM

    I feel as though this is not a new concept that stress can effect the heart; stress can indeed be a cause of a heart attack and other health issues within the body. That being said, I agree with Manda that it is significantly important to continue developing research on the factors leading to heart disease, being that it is the leading cause of death of Americans. Everything in this article, as well as your post, makes absolute sense. So with this knowledge, you would think that people would take more initiatives to step back and take care of themselves, but that is certainly easier said than done. This article is a perfect example of how mental health and physical health go hand in hand.

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