From the North American Menopause Society (NAMS) press release:<\/p>\n
Expressing your true feelings is not only good for your mental health, but it could also be important for your physical health. A new study associates self-silencing (inhibiting one’s self-expression) with greater carotid plaque buildup<\/strong> which could lead to a stroke<\/strong> and other cardiovascular problems<\/strong>. Study results will be presented during The North American Menopause Society (NAMS) Annual Meeting in Chicago, September 25 to 28, 2019.<\/p>\n
Individuals engage in a range of behaviors to maintain close relationships, some of which may be costly to their own health<\/strong>. One such behavior is self-silencing, which is sometimes used to avoid conflict or relationship loss. Although self-silencing has been linked to worse mental and self-reported physical health in women, it has not been previously examined in relation to women’s cardiovascular health.<\/p>\n
In this new study of 304 perimenopausal and postmenopausal nonsmoking women, researchers tested whether self-silencing was associated with carotid atherosclerosis. They found that greater self-silencing was related to increased odds of plaque independent of socio-demographics, CVD risk factors, and depression<\/strong>. The results were based on women’s self-reporting on a range of factors such as how often they expressed anger or put someone else’s needs before their own. Ultrasound imaging was used to quantify carotid plaque.<\/p>\n
“Given increased public health interest in women’s experiences in intimate relationships, our results suggest that women’s socio-emotional expression may be relevant to their cardiovascular health<\/strong>,” says Karen Jakubowski, PhD, lead author of the study, from the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh.<\/p>\n
“Studies like this one are valuable as they highlight the importance of understanding how a woman’s emotional disposition can affect her physical health,” says Dr. Stephanie Faubion, NAMS medical director. “These results should encourage healthcare providers to take into consideration socio-emotional factors when outlining a preventive care plan for their patients.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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