6 Ways Anger May Be Killing You
Anger May Be Killing You
Anger has multiple negative effects on the body, most of which impacts not only the mind but mainly the heart. In what ways, you ask? Here are ways anger may be seriously affecting your health.
6 Ways Anger May Be Killing You
1. Let’s start with the impact on the small vessels of the heart, the coronary arteries. One large study found that among 12,986 middle-aged African-American and white men and women, those who rated high in traits such as anger — but had normal blood pressure — were more prone to coronary artery disease (CAD) or heart attack. In fact, the angriest people faced roughly twice the risk of CAD and almost three times the risk of heart attack compared to subjects with the lowest levels of anger.
2. Anger also brings on high levels of anxiety and depression. They tend to co-occur. People who are angry a lot also tend to have other chronic negative emotions as well. Exercise helps to release endorphins, which are ‘happy’ chemical that quell the production of and drown out feelings of depression.
3. Scientists speculate that anger may produce direct biological effects on the heart and arteries. Negative emotions, such as anger, quickly activate the “fight-or-flight” response, (autonomic nervous system) triggering the “stress axis,” creating a cascade of neurochemicals that are all geared toward helping you in the short run if you’re facing a crisis. If they persist over time, they end up being potentially damaging, because excessive amounts of stress hormones may speed up the process of atherosclerosis (thickening of the walls of the large arteries of the body), in which fatty plaques build up. Other research suggests that stress hormones may lead to higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), a substance linked to atherosclerosis and future heart disease risk.
4. In the long run, and sometimes even the short term, however, this automatic response to anger can weaken your immune system and lead to a variety of health problems such as:
Headaches
Problems with digestion
Insomnia
Increased anxiety
Depression
High blood pressure
Skin problems, such as eczema
Heart attack
Stroke
5. Anger may also disrupt the electrical impulses of the heart and provoke dangerous heart rhythm disturbances. Conditions such as atrial fibrillation and atrial flutter are just two that can give you shortness of breath and listlessness. Some serious gym time, street runs, speed walking, and cross training help to modulate and normalize heart rate and stroke volume, controlling your cardiac output.
6. Besides direct biological effects, lifestyle factors also come into play. Angry people may take worse care of themselves and possibly be more anxious, depressed, more likely to smoke, and less likely to engage in physical activity, which leads to overall poor nutritional habits and drinking to excess.
That’s all for now folks. Thanks for reading. Feel free to stop by my website for other related health articles.
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