Reduce stress to improve heart health

Graphics: YEN LAN

Stroke (cerebrovascular accident) not only occurs in the elderly but also in young people, some cases are only in their 20s. This is one of the extremely dangerous complications of cardiovascular diseases such as high blood pressure, myocardial infarction, coronary insufficiency... and diabetes.

Identify risk factors

Hypertension is divided into two types: primary hypertension (high blood pressure) and secondary hypertension (high blood pressure due to a disease). To effectively prevent and treat hypertension, especially primary hypertension, it is necessary to know the causes, thereby taking measures to reduce risk factors.

The cause of primary hypertension is still unclear, the risk factors mentioned are genetics, obesity, unhealthy lifestyle, unscientific diet, eating too much salt, prolonged nervous fatigue due to pressure... Risk factors such as nutrition, use of stimulants, overweight and obesity... are mentioned a lot in medical documents, healtheducation documents. Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO) held a symposium on stress and hypertension. Many scientists have had in-depth discussions on the relationship between stress and hypertension and came to the conclusion: Reducing stress contributes to improving cardiovascular health.

Stress reduction plays a very important role in reducing heart disease and many other diseases.

When the body is stressed, it releases hormones that make the heart beat faster and harder and the blood vessels constrict. These activities increase the pressure of the blood against the vessel walls (hypertension) for a period of time. Although there is no evidence that stress causes long-term high blood pressure, responding to stress in unhealthy ways can increase the risk of heart attack and stroke, such as drinking too much alcohol, caffeine; eating unhealthy foods; overeating; and lack of physical activity. Cardiovascular disease can also be caused by stress.

The hormones your body produces during stress can damage your blood vessels, which can lead to heart disease. Depression or anxiety can also cause you to forget to take your blood pressure medication or other heart medications.

Reduce stress to protect your heart

Stress increases blood pressure in the short term and when the stress is gone, the blood pressure will return to the level before the stress. However, high blood pressure due to stress can cause stroke or heart attack and blood vessels can also be damaged, thereby affecting other organs and parts such as the kidneys, eyes, brain... The damage caused by high blood pressure due to stress, if repeated many times, is the same as the damage caused by high blood pressure over a long period of time. Therefore, reducing stress plays a very important role in reducing cardiovascular disease and many other diseases.

There are many ways to reduce stress, depending on your condition, preferences, and goals. Experts recommend that exercising for 30 minutes at a time, 3-5 times a week can reduce stress. In particular, for people with high blood pressure, exercise will help manage stress, improve health, and reduce blood pressure.

In addition, people with stress need to adjust their work schedule accordingly. If you work too much, have a busy work schedule during the day, you will have less time for physical exercise... These things are risks leading to high blood pressure. You should practice deep breathing, slow breathing to help relax and thereby reduce anxiety. Practicing yoga and meditation also helps reduce anxiety. In addition, people with stress need to get enough sleep (7-8 hours a day); sleeping too little can aggravate health problems. At the same time, do things you enjoy to reduce anxiety, thereby reducing blood pressure.

Source: https://baophuyen.vn/suc-khoe/202505/giam-cang-thang-de-cai-thien-suc-khoe-trai-tim-0d426cd/