Are Depression Related to Heart Disease Risk?

The connection between mind and body It’s a topic that has puzzled people for years. Is it possible for a person to really die of sadness? Or is a healthy head really found in a healthy body?

Scientists have been studying the relationships between mental and physical health for some time. We can say that one of these relations is the disease of our age. depression and heart disease between them is suspected. So, is there really a link between depression and heart disease? A new study contributes to answering this question.

Women with a higher risk of heart disease also have a higher risk of developing depression.

Studies show that people with general heart disease experience depression compared to those in the general population. more common somehow manifests itself. Moreover, among physically healthy individuals followed for many years, those with higher depressive symptoms are more likely to develop heart disease than those without depression. higher is reportedly.

Additionally, in people with acute heart disease, depression may be due to any other cause, not just heart disease. increased risk of heart attack and death It is also known to be associated with increased But in the sense that very few studies can be the opposite of this, so actually causing depression It is known that everything is handled in terms of heart diseases. This is exactly how the newly published research looks at the link between heart disease and depression.

Sandra Martín-Peláez of the University of Granada, Spain, and colleagues investigated the link between cardiovascular risk factors and depression in people between the ages of 55 and 75 who increase a person’s risk of heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. from metabolic syndrome focused on people suffering The participants of this study were also involved in a larger study that analyzed the effects of the Mediterranean diet on people who are overweight or obese and have metabolic syndrome.

Participants in other studies consisted of one group that followed a calorie-restricted Mediterranean diet and a physical activity program, and another group that followed an unrestricted Mediterranean diet without a physical activity program. As a result, the fundamental analysis of the main work more than 6,500 participants were included and more than 4,500 followed two years later.

To identify the main risk factors for heart disease, the researchers used the well-established Framingham risk score, developed by tracking healthy people over time, and compared participants to having a heart attack or dying from heart disease within ten years. low, medium or high risk were classified as

Researchers who asked participants about depressive symptoms using questionnaires at baseline and then two years later found no significant association between cardiovascular risk and depression at baseline or follow-up. So overall, participants with a higher risk of heart disease are more likely than normal to have or develop depression. was not higher.

Those with a higher cardiovascular risk at baseline when they analyzed the data by sex women are more likely to show signs of depression. The researchers found nothing to suggest that this was the case at follow-up, neither in men nor women.

On average, it is seen that the depression scores of all participants in two years decreased was detected. Accordingly, depression scores were lower for those with low cardiovascular risk and those in the intervention group.

It is obviously difficult for now to understand what the findings from this study mean clearly. The researchers analyzed the data in several different ways; however, generally controversial results were obtained. Accordingly, the only definite conclusion is women with heart diseasethan men with heart disease to higher levels of depression This was expected, given that women in the general population have a higher rate of depression than men.

Why are depression and heart disease thought to be linked?

Although this study cannot provide conclusive evidence that heart disease risk is associated with a higher risk of developing depression, there is already existing evidence that heart disease and depression are linked. a strong body of evidence contributes. It seems possible that this relationship can be explained by a number of behavioral and biological factors. Some biological factors that are common to both depression and heart disease risk are as follows:

• increased inflammation
• endothelial dysfunction
• altered autonomic nervous system activity
• blood platelet dysfunction

In addition to these, such as regular physical activity, not smoking and eating healthy healthy lifestyle factors it is protective against both heart disease and depression; Conversely, unhealthy lifestyle factors are also known to be associated with an increased risk of heart disease and depression.

On the other hand, the aim of this study is to further investigate diet and lifestyle for use in potential treatments for depression in people with heart disease and those at risk of heart disease. hope It is said to be giving.