(ETX Daily Up) – Considered one of the evils of the century, mental health disorders can have a significant impact on physical health. This is revealed by a new study conducted by international researchers. They suggest that adults aged 20 to 39 with mental disorders are more likely to be affected by a heart attack or stroke.
Physical health and mental health are inseparable, and even form a whole that induces the overall state of health of an individual. Something to take into account at a time when the mental health of populations has deteriorated considerably – one in eight people presented a mental disorder in the world in 2019 according to the World Health Organization (WHO) – with the consequences that this induced on the physical health of the persons concerned. Eating disorders, insomnia, exhaustion, or weakening of the immune system are among the potential repercussions of mental health disorders, but they are not the only ones. A team of international researchers, mainly South Korean and British, investigated the impact of these disorders on the cardiovascular health of some 6.5 million adults aged 20 to 39.
Published in the journal European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, this work was more specifically based on data from the Korean national health insurance fund, and on more than 6.5 million people aged 20 to 39 who carried out an examination. health between 2009 and 2012 – and having no history of myocardial infarction or stroke. The researchers say the average age of participants was 31, more than half of them were 30 or older, and one in eight study participants had a mental illness, and more. particularly depression, anxiety, and insomnia.
An impact on cardiovascular health
The scientists first determined the mental health disorders from which some of the participants suffered, then looked at a potential association between the mental disorders observed in adults aged 20 to 39 and the risk of developing a heart attack. myocardium and/or ischemic stroke after adjusting for certain factors such as age, smoking, alcohol consumption, diabetes, arterial hypertension, or even physical activity. To do this, they followed the participants until December 2018, counting at the end of their work 16,133 myocardial infarctions and 10,509 strokes.
Verdict, people with mental disorders, regardless of their nature, had a greater risk of being affected by a heart attack or stroke, in the order of 58% and 42% respectively, compared to the other participants. . In detail, the risk of heart attack was 1.97 times higher for people with eating disorders, 1.73 times higher for those with insomnia, 1.72 times higher for those with depression. , and 1.53 times higher for anxiety. The finding is the same for strokes with a risk 1.60 times higher for depression, 1.45 times for insomnia, and 1.38 times for anxiety.
“Patients with mental health conditions are known to have a shorter life expectancy than the general population, with the majority of deaths being due to physical illnesses. Our study shows that a significant number of young adults have at least one mental health condition, which may predispose them to heart attacks and strokes. Future research should examine the cardiovascular benefits of addressing psychological issues and monitoring heart health in this vulnerable group.” Dr. Chan Soon Park of Seoul National University Hospital, lead author of the study, in a statement.
Previous studies have shown that engaging in physical activity, whether yoga, brisk walking, fitness, or others, is beneficial in improving symptoms of depression, anxiety, and depression. stress. This is confirmed by a recent report presented by the WHO and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) showing that at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week could prevent 11.5 million new cases of non-communicable diseases by 2050, including cases of depression. Another avenue to consider: nature baths prescribed by prescription which would also be – according to science – beneficial for the mental health of populations.