Are you in great shape? Keep calm about your medical condition because it has been shown that the more your concern about your health increases, the more your cardiovascular risk follows. These are the conclusions of a Norwegian research published in the British Medical Journal.
What is hypochondria?
Hypochondria refers to a somatoform psychiatric disorder characterized by physical symptoms that suggest a medical condition, but cannot be fully explained by it.
It is rather common to come across people thinking they are sick when this is not the case (4 to 9% of medical consultations would be without real object) but the real hypochondriacswho live locked in the dread of illness, are much rarer.
Stressed men more at risk of heart disease than women
Scientists from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (Norway) followed more than 7,000 people aged around 40 for 12 years. The objective: to assess the link betweenanxiety concerning health and the development of real medical disorders, particularly cardiac ones. The volunteers completed questionnaires about their medical issues and heart health. Conclusions: the anxious people have a greater risk (on average 73% more) of developing cardiac disease.
This link would be greater in men (78%) than in women (58%). Stress in the face of illness is, according to these results, a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. A word of advice, therefore: if you have a heart risk, have your anxiety monitored by a doctor. Namely: 13% of French people are hypochondriacs, according to a 2014 Ifop study.
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