“The Physical Risks of Sadness: How Grief Affects Your Body, Especially Your Heart”

06:10 PM

Wednesday 03 May 2023

the concerto

Sadness not only affects mental health, but also threatens a person organically with a set of risks, according to Dr. Jamal Shaaban, former dean of the National Heart Institute.

Also read: How does grief affect your body?

Shaaban said that feeling sad causes the sympathetic nervous system to produce high levels of stress and anxiety hormones, such as cortisol and adrenaline, which negatively affect the health of the body, especially the heart and blood vessels.

You may be interested: The stress hormone has serious damage.. 6 signs that reveal high cortisol

He added that sadness may affect the heart with a dangerous syndrome, which causes a change in the shape of its muscle, and makes it less able to pump oxygen-laden blood to vital organs.

He explained that the serious medical condition he was referring to is “broken heart syndrome,” stressing that it is similar to a heart attack in a set of symptoms, such as chest pain and shortness of breath.

You may also be interested in: How to detect a heart attack before it occurs in the future?

According to the American Heart Association, there is a relationship between depression and an increased risk of heart attack, heart failure, stroke, and blood clots.

The American Association attributed the reason to the changes that the heart is exposed to when feeling sad, stressed and anxious, including:

– Hypertension.

– Arrhythmia.

Decreased blood flow to the heart.

Shaaban concluded his speech by pointing out the possibility that grief might expose its owner to the risk of sudden death, by causing the heart muscle to stop without warning.

Also read: What are the causes of sudden cardiac arrest?