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full screenWhen the temperature drops quickly, the heart can take a beating according to research. Photo: Anders Wiklund/TT
Cold snaps that last for several days can be stressful for the heart, according to research based on Swedish data.
It is above all older people and those who already have heart problems that have an increased risk of being affected when the temperature suddenly drops. And it seems that it is not the cold itself but the change in temperature that affects the heart.
In a study, published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, researchers reviewed data from 120,000 heart attacks in Sweden between October and March in the years 2005 to 2019.
Increased after two days of cold
The researchers compared the patients’ place of residence with weather data from SMHI. Then they saw that the number of heart attacks increased after it was cold for two days in a row. The connection was not affected by how cold it was to begin with, but by how big the change in temperature was.
For example, if it was ten degrees and the next day it was minus five degrees, the number of heart attacks did not increase the first day. But if the cold lasted for a few days, the risk of a heart attack increased. The greatest increase in risk was seen between days two and six with cold. The average age of the people who suffered a heart attack was 71 years.
The stress system is activated
From this type of registry study, it is not possible to establish that it is the cold that triggers the heart attack, only that there is a connection. But according to the researchers, the reason why the risk of heart attacks increases in the cold is that the body’s stress system is activated to keep us warm. This causes the blood vessels to constrict, which in turn raises blood pressure and causes the heart to beat faster. In the end, the strain can become too great, not least for those who already have cardiovascular problems.
The study is based on data from the Swedish quality register Swedeheart, which is financed, among other things, by the Heart-Lung Foundation.
FACT Heart attack
These are some common symptoms of a heart attack:
a lot of pain in the chest all the time and the pain can radiate to the arms or back
an unpleasant feeling or pressure in the chest that can also radiate up to the neck, jaws and shoulders
you may have difficulty breathing and cold sweats
you can feel afraid and have anxiety
palpitations and dizziness
flu-like symptoms and chest pain at the same time
nausea or vomiting
In 2023, approximately 22,200 cases of acute myocardial infarction occurred. It is roughly twice as common for men to be affected as for women, both when it comes to contracting and dying in connection with an acute heart attack.
Source: 1177, National Board of Health and Welfare
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