Your State of Mind and Heart Risk

Preliminary research in Denmark has found that easily distressed individuals were significantly more likely to develop fatal or nonfatal heart disease during a 15-year follow-up period. This vulnerability was measured on a 12-item questionnaire. The authors stated that this measure could be a marker for some other factors, but stress is a known risk factor. More study is needed to control for confounders such as diet, alcohol intake, and stress biomarkers.

PositiveTip: Solomon was probably right when he wrote: "A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength" (Proverbs 17:22).