Happiness Lowers Risk For Stroke

Could treating depression and reducing anger be the cure for what ails you?

from: http://seniorhealth.about.com/od/stroke/a/anger_stroke.htm

Do you remember the movie " Grumpy Old Men " ? Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon portrayed widower neighbors whose anger, depression and overall meanness seemed to be the secret potion to longevity. This has always been a popular theme in movies, the character who survives because they are just too mean to die.

Fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately for some) this premise has been shown to be seriously flawed. Studies have shown that depression and anger can point to an increased risk of heart disease, high blood pressure and stroke.

In one study from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston researchers decided to assess signs of depression, or what they called negative effect separately from signs of emotional well-being, or as they termed it positive effect.

What they found was that older people who are happy or have "high levels of positive affect" seem to have some protection against stroke. Those elderly, who often feel blue - "individuals with high levels of depressive symptoms", tend to have more strokes than older adults who aren't depressed. Happiness appears to have a protective effect when it comes to health.

During the study over 4000 subjects, men and women, a mix of black and white were evaluated for positive or negative affect by answering yes or no to 20 statements made by the interviewers. Sixteen of the statements suggested negative emotions or experiences such as "I could not shake off the blues", "I had crying spells" or "People were unfriendly". The four positive statements that indicated a positive attitude were "I felt that I was just as good as other people"; "I felt hopeful about the future"; "I was happy"; and "I enjoyed life". Those study participants who answered yes to the positive statements had a showed decreased risk of stroke over the six years of the study, with the results being dramatically increased for the men who participated in the study.

Why the difference? Is happiness a magic potion that keeps blood pressure down and arteries clear? Does a smile on your face ward off evil spirits? Is there a way to bottle happiness? No, that is not likely. What is more likely is that being unhappy leads to following an unhealthy lifestyle.

Another study done at the University of Pittsburgh indicated that women who are depressed and angry are more likely to have hardening of the arteries or arteriosclerosis, and are also more likely to have a lifestyle that leads to arteriosclerosis. The behavior risk factors for arteriosclerosis included smoking, poor physical fitness and lower levels of good cholesterol with higher levels of bad cholesterol. This study finds that those participants in the study showing the most depressive symptoms were also two and one half times more likely to partake of those behaviors that place a person at higher risk for arteriosclerosis and heart disease. This can lead to premature death or disability.

These findings serve to emphasize the need for not only physical assessment of risk for disease but of psychological risk of disease. Physicians should not only ask about eating habits and activity but should evaluate emotional attitude. Perhaps treating underlying depression may waylay a potential heart attack.

What can you do? If you find yourself being unable to shake the blues or feeling down, seek help. Your physician can direct you to the appropriate mental health professional. If you have a hard time with anger or cynicism perhaps you need to avoid those things in your life that cause anger and avoid them. If that is not possible, many communities have classes in anger management. It may just save your life.