February is a time we express love to those in our life AND to ourselves. It is also National Heart Month. Here is an article about why you need to reduce your stress to take care of your heart and yourself.

TAKE CARE OF YOUR HEART BY REDUCING YOUR STRESS

How Stress Affects Your Heart (From an article on Stress.org.)

• Stressful life change events, Type A behavior and emotions (depression, anxiety, hostility, anger) have all been linked to higher rates of heart attacks.
• Stress causes spasm and constriction of the coronary arteries and increased platelet stickiness, both of which promote clot formation.
• Stress increases homocysteine, CRP (C-Reactive Protein) and fibrinogen, all of which are associated with increased risk for heart attack and stroke.
• Stress causes deep abdominal fat deposits that promote insulin resistance, Type 2 diabetes, hypertension and heart attacks.
• Stress can cause atrial fibrillation, a powerful risk factor for stroke. Stress causes ventricular fibrillation, the leading cause of sudden death, and can occur in teenagers with no evidence of coronary atherosclerosis.
• Stress causes “Broken Heart Syndrome”, particularly in women following a traumatic event. This is due to severe left ventricular contractile dysfunction that frequently mimics a massive myocardial infarction.
• Stress contributes to all the standard Framingham risk factors of cholesterol, smoking, and hypertension, as well as diabetes and obesity.
• Stress can precipitate and/or worsen congestive heart failure.
• Stress reduces heart rate variability, a powerful predictor of sudden death. Stress reduces resistance to infections that have increasingly been incriminated as a cause of coronary atherosclerosis.
• Severe stress can cause a myocardial infarction in the absence of any significant coronary disease due to direct damage from increased norepinephrine secretion at nerve endings in heart muscle.

Dr. Paul J. Rosch is current Chairman of the Board of The American Institute of Stress, Clinical Professor of Medicine and Psychiatry at New York Medical College, Honorary Vice President of the International Stress Management Association and has served as Chair of its U.S. branch

If you are looking for ways to manage your stress and help your heart. Please connect with me. I am here to help and guide you.