What are the health effects of anger? Anger really runs through the veins. A new study warns that this emotion damages blood vessels, increasing the risk of cardiac arrest. You can read the results in the scientific journal of the American Heart Association.
The experiment on the effects of anger on health
The researchers analyzed data from 280 participants. The experts assigned them the task of remembering feelings of anger, sadness, anxiety or neutrality for eight minutes. Before and after the experiment, the researchers measured the vascular health of everyone involved. The only feeling that worsened the health of veins and arteries was anger.
The volunteers first relaxed for about half an hour. Immediately afterwards the team measured blood pressure and heart rate, as well as tests that measure the health of the endothelium, the thin lining of the inside of blood vessels. The function of the endothelium is implicated in the development ofatherosclerosis which can lead to heart attack or stroke.
A few minutes of anger is enough
Previous studies had already demonstrated this how stress can damage the function of the endothelium. In the new study, researchers investigate the ability of blood vessels to dilate.
Even small moments of anger can temporarily damage the ability of blood vessels to dilate. Anger practically halves the ability to dilate. This effect lasts up to 40 minutes after experiencing the negative emotion.
Of course, it only seems like a few minutes. But there is the problem of accumulation. Think about who gets angry several times during the same day or who by attitude is inclined to rant.
Effects of anger on health: we must learn to manage it
To explain this phenomenon well, researchers say that if a person gets angry just once, they suspend the ability to dilate the blood vessels. However, if you get angry hundreds or thousands of times over a lifetime it can lead to permanent damage.
The problem is that anger is a human emotion and we are often unable to avoid it. Of course there is a lot of advice on how we should learn to manage itbut they require a lot of time and effort.