It has been the stuff of great romantic novels and blockbuster films. Doctors have long suspected it. A study of 9,000 British civil ‘broken heart’
The study, reported in the Archives of internal Medicine, found the stress and anxiety of hostile, angry relationships can boost the risk of developing heart disease.Chances of a heart attack or chest pain rose by 34 per cent compared to people on good terms with a spouse or partner.
” A person’s heart condition seems to be influenced by negative inimate relationships”, researchers wrote” we showed that the negative aspects of close relationships… are associated with coronary heart disease”
Other research has shown more social connections can mean a healthier life- the ” protective effect”- but few studies have looked at how lose frienships or marriages affect health, said Roberto De Vogli, an epidemiologist at University College London, who led the study.
The researchers studied civil servants who completed questionnaires about negative aspects of their relationships- which included a spouse or close friend- between 1989 and 1990 or between 1985 and 1988.
The quetions asked whether people had emotional support, a chance to talk with someone about problems or whether they could count on a partner or close friend for something as simple as a ride to the grocery store, De Volgli said.
The team followed up over a 12-year period and found that people who reported that arguments, criticism and other types of conflict were common had a 34 percent greater risk of heart attacks or chest pain.