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A recent American study conducted on nearly 600,000 young adults reveals an existing link between a depressive state and cardiovascular health. And invites to intensify prevention on the two health problems.
If you’re feeling down half the time, it’s time to see a health professional to take care of your mental health. But according to a new scientific publication, it might also be good to watch your heart. A large-scale American study thus reveals an association between depression and other mental health problems with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in 18-49 year olds. Young adults who self-report depression also have higher rates of heart attacks and strokes.
Cardiac risks double to double when mental health fails
Johns Hopkins University researchers looked at data from 593,616 adults who participated in the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, a nationally representative self-reported survey conducted between 2017 and 2020.
The survey included questions about whether they had ever been told they had a depressive disorder, how many days they had poor mental health in the past month (0 days, 1-13 days, or 14 at 30 days), if they had had a heart attack, stroke or chest pain, and if they had risk factors for cardiovascular disease (high blood pressure, high cholesterol, overweight, smoking, diabetes or poor physical activity and diet). People who had two or more of these risk factors were considered to have suboptimal cardiovascular health.
The study revealed that:
- Those who reported feeling depressed for several days had a stronger link to cardiovascular disease and poor heart health;
- Compared with people who reported no days of poor mental health in the past 30 days, participants who reported up to 13 days of poor mental health had a 1.5 times higher risk of cardiovascular disease;
- Those who reported 14 or more days of poor mental health had twice the risk of those who reported no days of depression.
Associations between poor mental health and cardiovascular disease did not differ significantly by gender or urban/rural status.
“The disease must be approached as a psychosocial attack”
While the study provides only a snapshot of cardiovascular health in young people with depression, it is further evidence of the need for medical as well as psychological management of cardiovascular health over time.
For Dr Jean-Pierre Houppe, specialist in cardiology and cardiovascular disease and author of The heart of happiness (Dunod 2019) contacted by Doctissimo, the study is large in terms of sample size with nearly 600,000 subjects. According to him, it confirms what is seen in cardiology today.
“We know that psycho-social stress, be it anxiety, depression, burnout, but also loneliness, will influence cardiovascular disease. And this through behaviors “I smoke more, I sleep less, I eat less well”, or direct factors such as inflammatory reactions”.
For the cardiologist, the published study is a new stone in the building of the global management of the disease :
“Cardiovascular disease is a ‘biopsychosocial’ disorder which is unfortunately not or little taught to doctors. We still too often see only a biomedical model in patients. But the fact of being isolated, the psychological suffering will modify all the risk factors that we know in cardiovascular risks: smoking, weight, diet, etc. And this, in a vicious circle, since the cardiovascular risks will also amplify the malaise” he summarizes.
A point also confirmed by the authors of the study who declare “Our study suggests that we need to prioritize mental health in young adults and perhaps increase heart disease screening and surveillance in people with mental health conditions and vice versa to improve overall heart health” .