-MATTERS OF THE HEART - MENTAL HEALTH AND CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH by Monika Gupta

 ‘Healthy mind leads to healthy body’. We listen to this aphorism many times, but have

you heard that healthy mind leads to healthy heart? Yes, healthy mind plays a vital role

in proper working of heart and vice-versa. Not only cardiovascular diseases but did any

disorder that brings mental stress.  Brain is the control center of all activities, and

beating of heart is one of the activities performed by it. Depression, anxiety, stress, etc.

are some mental illnesses that affect the healthy heart. Before moving into the details of

linkage between heart and mental illness, let’s probe into the biological aspect of this

linkage. When a person suffering from depression, anxiety, stress, etc. for a long period

of time, many physiological effects such as increased heart rate, reduced blood flow to

the heart because of catecholamine, high cortisol level which leads to hypothalamic-

pituitary-adrenal axis deregulation, etc. arises. Prolonged exposure to these

physiological effects lead to build up of calcium levels in the arteries, heart diseases,

etc. and all these effects lead to malfunctioning of heart.

According to World Health Organization, depression is characterized by persistent

sadness and a lack of interest or pleasure in previously rewarding or enjoyable

activities.  It can also disturb sleep and appetite; tiredness and poor concentration. 

People diagnosed with coronary heart diseases are more prone to depression because

they have to think about their health before embarking on any new activity. According to

one of the studies, there is 15% to 30 % people with cardiovascular disease have

clinical depression (major depressive disorder). High dose of medication during illness

also trigger depression symptoms in patients. Mental illness and coronary heart

diseases (CHD) have bidirectional relationship (mental illness triggers CHD and vice-

versa). Mental illness leads people to adopt unhealthy behavior like smoking, drinking,

unhealthy eating, etc. which makes people fall into the claws of heart diseases. Some

research shows that medication used to treat mental illness like bipolar disorder,

schizophrenia, etc. triggered cardio metabolic disease risk. Some of the researches

from different research institutes prove that people suffering from cardiovascular

diseases could develop mental illness and people having mental illness could develop

cardiovascular diseases. According to the American Heart Association, it is considered

reasonable to screen depression in patients with cardiovascular health diseases, and

33% of heart attack patients develop symptoms of depression. Prolonged exposure of

depression in people of age 50 or more could increase the risk of heart stroke,

according to the American Heart Association.  

The cycle of mental health and cardiovascular diseases needs to be broken. But how?

There are plenty of methods to bring the health of patient’s suffering from both types of

diseases (mental illness and heart related problem) on the track. One of the best ways

to fight with any type of disorder is physical activity. Physical activities include exercise,

yoga, walking, jogging, etc. These things keep you active throughout the day and

release chemicals which could stable your mental and heart activities. Patients with

severe cardiovascular disorder should contact their doctor before starting any physical

exercise. These activities help you to improve your biological clock which in turn

improves your mental illness symptoms like insomnia, depression, etc which in turn

reduce cardiovascular diseases. Healthy diet is another method to start a healthy life.

Healthy food keeps the body weight, blood pressure, cholesterol level, etc. under

control which cut down the risk of developing heart related problem. Adding green

vegetables, fruits, dry fruits, etc. could help decrease the side effects of medications

that a patient is taking for mental illness or cardiovascular disorder or both. When we

are saying to take balanced diet, it does not mean skipping meals. Skipping meal may

have negative effect on the body. Sometimes materials which give short time benefit

would be dangerous for the long time of your health for example smoking and alcohol.

Smoking and alcohol both give relaxation from anxiety, depression, etc for the brief

period of time, however in reality these substances increase the level of anxiety, tension

etc making the mental condition worst. Addiction of these could lead to severe heart

problem. Medications prescribed by doctors should be followed strictly. Physicians Last

but not the least method is finding the support group where people with the same

conditions as yours could motivate you for leading healthy and happy life. There are

several helpline number for mental illness which take you out from the chasm of mental

disorder. 

 

References :

https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/risk-factors/mental-health

https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/the-head-heart-connection-mental-health-and-heart-

disease

https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/mentalhealth.htm#:~:text=Over%20time%2C%20these%20physiolog

ic%20effects,metabolic%20disease%2C%20and%20heart%20disease.&text=Evidence%20shows%20that

%20mental%20health,%2C%20stroke%2C%20and%20heart%20attack.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6016051/

https://www.karger.com/Article/PDF/365531

https://hheart-health/depression-and-heart-health-a-two-way-connectionealthblog.uofmhealth.org/

https://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343(16)30551-4/pdf

https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-lifestyle/mental-health-and-wellbeing/mental-health-

and-heart-health

https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/heart-disease-and-mental-

health#:~:text=Heart%20disease%20and%20mental%20health%20are%20closely%20linked.,risk%20of%

20further%20heart%20problems

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-disorders

https://uihc.org/health-topics/understanding-link-between-depression-and-heart-disease

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/326042023_The_intriguing_relationship_between_coronary