Cheerful attitude good for the heart: scientists
Updated
Canadian researchers say staying positive, with a regular hearty laugh are very good for your heart. The scientists say their 10 year study has produced the first objective data to support the belief that high morale leads to a stronger heart.
Presenter: Meredith Griffiths
Speaker: Karina Davidson, psychiatrist and researcher, Columbia University
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GRIFFITHS: There's be speculation for a while that people with a positive attitudes have stronger hearts and now scientists say they've got the proof. Psychiatrist Karina Davidson, who is now working at Columbia University in New York, began the study in Canada more than 10 years ago. Her team filmed interviews with more than 1,700 people in Nova Scotia.
DAVIDSON: We asked them about daily hassles, their daily routine, hypotheticals, what they do in certain situations and then the video tapes were coded for the amount of positive emotions or positive affect that was expressed while discussing these daily issues. That score then turned out to be a fairly strong predictor of fewr heart attacks across the next 10 years.
GRIFFITHS: The scientists tracked the people for a decade and at the end found the ones who had shown the most happiness and satisfaction were less likely to have had a heart attack.
DAVIDSON: The very happiest people were quite protected from heart disease. Those who showed moderate amount were somewhat protected and those who showed none at all were at increased risk.
GRIFFITHS: Crunching the numbers, associate professor Davidson says a positive attitude reduces the risk of heart disease by 22 per cent. She says that could be because of the lifestyle of happy people.
DAVIDSON: They report sleeping better, they tend to smoke less, they exercise more and they at least report eating a better diet. So, one possibility is that across 10 years, the engagement in regular healthy behaviour is what was the mechanism by which happiness predicted fewer heart attacks.
GRIFFITHS: But Associate Professor Davidson says the reasons could also be physiological.
DAVIDSON: When someone is satisfied, content, feeling pleasure and enjoyment in the activity that they're doing, they have what is called a relaxation response. Their stress hormones go down, their blood pressure goes down, their heart rate slows. And in animal models at least, being in that relaxed state is predictive of less heart disease.
