Heartbreak increases risk of heart attack

[Naveed Yaseen]

SYDNEY: People mourning the loss of a loved one are six times more likely to suffer cardiac arrest, potential proof that you can indeed die of a broken heart, Australian researchers said on Tuesday. According to a Heart Foundation study of the physical changes suffered immediately after a profound loss, grieving people were at significantly higher risk of heart problems, said lead researcher Thomas Buckley. “We found higher blood pressure, increased heart rate and changes to immune system and clotting that would increase the risk of heart attack,” Buckley said. Of the 160 people studied, half were mourning the loss of a partner or child, and their risk of heart attack increased six-fold, he said. The risk reduced after six months and levelled out after two years, he added. afp

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