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Photo: Getty Images / Roc Canals
To protect our hearts, we know our genetics,what we eat(hat tip to theDASH diet),how our biometrics clock inandhow physically active we areall play an important role in our overall heart disease risk profile.
Last week, scientists shared another fascinating finding of how we might be able to lower our risk for heart-related health challenges. Middle-aged women between 45 to 67 years old who practiced self-compassion and mindfulness practices had lower risk for cardiovascular disease—and that’s regardless of other traditional heart disease risk factors, likehigh blood pressure, insulin resistance and blood cholesterol levels—according to a new study published December 16th in the journalHealth Psychology.
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Women who ranked higher on the researchers' self-compassion scale had thinner walls surrounding their carotid arteries and less plaque build-up inside those arteries. Both of these arterial features have been correlated with lower risk for heart disease, including strokes andheart attacks, in subsequent years. These findings rang true even when the scientists controlled for other lifestyle and mental factors like smoking status, depression symptoms and physical activity rates.
“A lot of research has been focused on studying how stress and other negative factors may impact cardiovascular health, but the impact of positive psychological factors, such as self-compassion, is far less known,“Rebecca Thurston, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry, clinical and translational science, epidemiology and psychology at the University of Pittsburgh says in aUPMC press release. “These findings underscore the importance of practicing kindness and compassion, particularly toward yourself. We are all living through extraordinarily stressful times, and our research suggests that self-compassion is essential for both our mental and our physical health.”
Many mental health pros have prescribed mindfulness and self-compassion activities (such as positive affirmations and otherself care-focused habits) for those who have high levels of stress and even to help reduce symptoms of mild depression and anxiety. And these new findings prove that using your heart to love not only others, but yourself, can actually help that heart protect itself.
Admittedly, this is easier said than done, but simple moments of self-compassion and mindfulness can really add up. Unsure of where to start? Try:
Just in time, the researchers add in the press release: “During the pandemic, the stressors have amplified, especially for women…Mindfulness practices, such as meditation, are gaining popularity among U.S. adults. Exhausted from a barrage of stressors at work and in their personal life, people increasingly choose to turn inward to help manage their mood and emotions.”
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