February is a month which pays tribute to the heart. Heart-shaped decorations are ubiquitous as stores are brimming with heart-shaped valentines and boxes of chocolates. Fittingly, it's also Heart Disease Awareness month. Throughout the month there is a media outpouring of heart healthy advice, such as how to create a healthy diet and lifestyle. What is often overlooked is the connection between feelings of the heart and overall heart health. Hearts are synonymous with love, and being loved can be the most powerful cardiac medicine of all.
Research proves Relationships Affect Heart Health
There have been many studies which have shown relationships to play a role in heart health. One of the most heartwarming studies was conducted by Dr. R. M Nerem at the University of Texas. His research showed that rabbits who were shown love and affection were able to avoid clogged arteries despite being fed a high cholesterol diet. The researchers were studying the correlation between diet and the development of coronary artery disease. Therefore, they created a diet for rabbits which was designed to cause artery blockages for the rabbits. When it was time to evaluate the results at the end of the study, researchers discovered that some of the rabbits' arteries escaped the blockages of plaque. The healthier rabbits had an astounding 60% lower amount of plaque than their counterparts.
The scientists examined each step of the study in order to determine a reason for the disparity in the amount of heart disease. They discovered that the healthier rabbits' cages shared a similar location in the laboratory. When the researchers asked their assistant about those particular rabbits, she told them that when she fed the rabbits, she had taken the rabbits in the middle of the lab out of their cages so she could hold them and talk to them while she fed them, while the rabbits' in other locations were too difficult to access.
The scientists found it hard to believe that affection would be the determining factor for the skewed results, so they repeated the study in the exact same fashion. Once again, the results were the same. The rabbits who received love and affection while eating had less coronary artery disease. The results suggest that eating with others in a loving environment may assist the metabolism of artery risky foods, and increase overall longevity.
Social Connections Increase Lifespan
Other research by Dr. Berkman and his colleagues for the Alameda County study found that people lacking in social and community support were more than three times more likely to die compared to others which strong social connections. They followed 7000 men and women in northern California, and found this to be true even for subjects with unhealthy lifestyles. Those who live the longest had both a healthy lifestyle and social connections.
Similarly, Dr. David Spiegel and his colleagues at Stanford Medical School in 1989 found that women with metastatic breast cancer who attended weekly support group meetings lived twice as long as women who didn't participate in support groups. Yet another research project at the VA San Diego Healthcare System concluded that women with heart disease and small social circles die at twice the rate as those who have more friends.
Pets are Powerful Medicine
The heart also responds to relationships with pets. A graduate student in the 1980s, Erica Friedman, found that pet owners were more likely to survive a heart attack. Another study published in the American Journal of Cardiology confirmed that male dog owners were significantly less likely to die within one year after a heart attack than those who did not own a dog. City University of New York looked at those who have had heart attacks and found that owning a pet lowered the risk of having a repeat heart attack.
It's important to note that not all relationships positively affect our health. A British study found that people with negativity associated with their close relationships had a 34% increase in their risk for heart disease. Other research indicates that marriage problems may result in lower survival rate in women with breast cancer.
Relationships with the people we love has been proven to be good for our health, and hearts. The body functions better when there are loving connections to other people, and pets. Researchers believe that socially healthy relationships cause positive biochemical changes which improve our overall health and lifespans. Similar to antioxidants which offset free radicals, our bodies produce chemicals in response to loving relationships which protect our health. Celebrate Valentine's Day with love in your heart, it's good for your health, and those you love.
Cheryl Heppard - Cheryl Heppard lives Michigan where she is a board certified holistic health counselor and also a business and marketing coach for health ...
