• Men who worry more may develop heart dis

    From ScienceDaily@1:317/3 to All on Mon Jan 24 21:30:38 2022
    Men who worry more may develop heart disease and diabetes risk factors
    at younger ages

    Date:
    January 24, 2022
    Source:
    American Heart Association
    Summary:
    In a long-term study of men in the U.S., more high-risk factors for
    heart disease and Type 2 diabetes developed earlier in life among
    those who reported more feelings of worry or feeling overwhelmed
    compared to those with lower levels of worry. The study's
    results suggest that men prone to worry and anxiety may need
    to pay extra attention to cardiometabolic disease risk factors,
    such as maintaining a healthy weight and taking blood pressure or
    cholesterol medicines, if needed.



    FULL STORY ========================================================================== Middle-aged men who are anxious and worry more may be at greater
    biological risk for developing heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes,
    also called cardiometabolic disease, as they get older, according to new research published today in the Journal of the American Heart Association,
    an open access journal of the American Heart Association.


    ========================================================================== "While the participants were primarily white men, our findings indicate
    higher levels of anxiousness or worry among men are linked to biological processes that may give rise to heart disease and metabolic conditions,
    and these associations may be present much earlier in life than is
    commonly appreciated - - potentially during childhood or young adulthood,"
    said Lewina Lee, Ph.D., lead author of the study, an assistant professor
    of psychiatry at Boston University School of Medicine, and an investigator
    and clinical psychologist at the National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, both in Boston.

    To track the relationship between anxiety and cardiometabolic disease risk factors over time, the investigators analyzed data on participants in the Normative Aging Study, which is a longitudinal study of aging processes
    in men, founded at the U.S. Veterans Affairs outpatient clinic in Boston
    in 1961. The study includes both veterans and non-veterans. This analysis included 1,561 men (97% white), who were an average age of 53 years in
    1975. The men completed baseline assessments of neuroticism and worry and
    did not have cardiovascular disease or cancer at that time. A personality inventory assessed neuroticism on a scale of 0-9. In addition, a worry assessment tool asked how often they worried about each of 20 items,
    with 0 meaning never and 4 meaning all the time.

    "Neuroticism is a personality trait characterized by a tendency
    to interpret situations as threatening, stressful and/or
    overwhelming. Individuals with high levels of neuroticism are prone
    to experience negative emotions -- such as fear, anxiety, sadness and
    anger -- more intensely and more frequently," said Lee. "Worry refers to
    our attempts at problem-solving around an issue whose future outcome is uncertain and potentially positive or negative. Worry can be adaptive,
    for example, when it leads us to constructive solutions. However, worry
    can also be unhealthy, especially when it becomes uncontrollable and
    interferes with our day-to-day functioning." After their baseline
    assessment, the men had physical exams and blood tests every 3-5
    years until they either died or dropped out of the study. The research
    team used follow-up data through 2015. During follow-up visits, seven cardiometabolic risk factors were measured: systolic (top number) blood pressure; diastolic (bottom number) blood pressure; total cholesterol; triglycerides; obesity (assessed by body mass index); fasting blood
    sugar levels; and the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), a marker
    of inflammation.

    A risk factor for cardiometabolic disease was considered in the
    high-risk range if the test results for the risk factor was higher
    than the cut-point established by national guidelines, or if the
    participant was taking any medicines to manage that risk factor (such as cholesterol-lowering medications). Cut points for ESR as a risk factor
    are not standardized, so the participant was ranked as high-risk if they
    were in the top 25% of those tested. Each participant was assigned a
    risk factor count score, one point for each of the seven risk factors classified as high-risk. The men were then stratified based on whether
    they did or did not develop six or more high-risk factors during the
    follow-up period.



    ========================================================================== "Having six or more high-risk cardiometabolic markers suggests that
    an individual is very likely to develop or has already developed cardiometabolic disease," said Lee.

    The researchers found:
    * Between ages 33 to 65, the average number of cardiometabolic
    high-risk
    factors increased by about one per decade, averaging 3.8
    risk-factors by age 65, followed by a slower increase per decade
    after age 65.

    * At all ages, participants with higher levels of neuroticism had
    a greater
    number of high-risk cardiometabolic factors.

    * Higher neuroticism was associated with a 13% higher likelihood
    of having
    six or more cardiometabolic disease risk factors, after adjusting
    for demographic characteristics (such as income and education)
    and family history of heart disease.

    * Higher worry levels were associated with a 10% higher likelihood of
    having six or more cardiometabolic disease risk factors after
    adjusting for demographic characteristics.

    "We found that cardiometabolic disease risk increased as men aged, from
    their 30s into their 80s, irrespective of anxiety levels, while men
    who had higher levels of anxiety and worry consistently had a higher
    likelihood of developing cardiometabolic disease over time than those
    with lower levels of anxiety or worry," Lee said.

    The researchers did not have data on whether participants had been
    diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. Standard evidence-based treatment for anxiety disorders includes psychotherapy or medication, or a combination
    of the two.

    "While we do not know whether treatment of anxiety and worry may lower
    one's cardiometabolic risk, anxious and worry-prone individuals should
    pay greater attention to their cardiometabolic health. For example,
    by having routine health check-ups and being proactive in managing
    their cardiometabolic disease risk levels (such as taking medications
    for high blood pressure and maintaining a healthy weight), they may be
    able to decrease their likelihood of developing cardiometabolic disease,"
    said Lee.

    It is unclear to what extent the results of this analysis are
    generalizable to the public since the study participants were all male
    and nearly all white. In addition, although participants were followed
    for four decades, they were middle-aged when the study began.

    "It would be important for future studies to evaluate if these
    associations exist among women, people from diverse racial and ethnic
    groups, and in more socioeconomically varying samples, and to consider
    how anxiety may relate to the development of cardiometabolic risk in
    much younger individuals than those in our study," Lee said.

    Co-authors are Kevin J. Grimm, Ph.D.; Avron Spiro III, Ph.D.; and Laura D.

    Kubzansky, M.P.H., Ph.D.

    The study was supported by the National Institute on Aging and the
    National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, which are divisions
    of the National Institutes of Health.

    special promotion Explore the latest scientific research on sleep and
    dreams in this free online course from New Scientist -- Sign_up_now_>>> ========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by American_Heart_Association. Note:
    Content may be edited for style and length.


    ========================================================================== Journal Reference:
    1. Lewina O. Lee, Kevin J. Grimm, Avron Spiro, Laura D. Kubzansky.

    Neuroticism, Worry, and Cardiometabolic Risk Trajectories: Findings
    From a 40‐Year Study of Men. Journal of the American Heart
    Association, 2022; DOI: 10.1161/JAHA.121.022006 ==========================================================================

    Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/01/220124084613.htm

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