Women are more vulenrable to emotional stress than men

A new study shows that omen with heart disease tend to have reduced blood flow to their heart when they are under emotional stress compared to men under the same condition and circumstances. Researchers said that the reduced blood flow is not a result of physical stress but of emotional stress.

According to Viola Vaccarino from the Emory University in the US, "Women who develop heart disease at a younger age make up a special high risk group because they are disproportionately vulnerable to emotional stress." She added that, "Young and middle aged women may be more vulnerable to emotional stress because they face considerable burden of stressors in everyday life such as managing kids, marriage, jobs and caring for parents."

Biology is another reason for having abnormal blood flow during emotional stress according to the researchers.

534 patients with stable coronary heart disease were given standardized mental stress test and a physical stress test. Mental stress test includes imagining stressful situations and sharing it to a small audience.

The researchers used nuclear imaging to take pictures of the participants’ heart while carrying out each tasks. Heart rate and blood pressure were also monitored. The researchers then analyzed the differences in coronary blood flow based on gender and age.

The result shows that women aged 55 and younger had three times greater reduction in blood flow to the heart. If the cause of stress is physical stress, there were no differences in blood flow on both gender.

Vaccarino said of the result of the study, "Health care providers should be aware of young and middle-age women's special vulnerability to stress and ask the questions about psychological stress that often don't get asked." It means, "If they note that their patient is under psychological stress or is depressed, they should advise the woman to get relevant help or support from mental health providers, stress reduction programs, or other means."