NAIROBI, Kenya – Researchers have revealed that anger is not only bad for your mood but also uniquely harmful to your heart.
Unlike other common negative emotions such as sadness or anxiety, anger has been found to adversely affect vascular health, potentially increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) over time.
These findings were published this week in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
Dr. Daichi Shimbo, a cardiologist and professor at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, led the study.
“We found that anger, but not the other emotions we studied, had an adverse impact on vascular health. There’s something about anger that’s what I call ‘cardiotoxic,'” Shimbo said.
Dr. Abinash Achrekar, from the University of New Mexico, praised the study:
“They have measured a way to look at our vascular biology with something so common to a human being: emotional state.”
The research team employed a translational approach, bridging laboratory science and real-world application.
Their goal was to explore the relationship between emotional states and endothelial cell health, an indicator of vascular health.
Endothelial cells line blood vessels and play a crucial role in maintaining healthy blood flow.
“Our blood vessels are not just tubes; they’re active organs that modulate themselves and function to either improve or sometimes worsen our cardiovascular overall health,” explained Achrekar.
The study involved 280 healthy adults randomized to four “emotional recall tasks”—anger, anxiety, sadness, and an emotionally neutral condition.
Participants recalled experiences associated with these emotions, after which researchers assessed their endothelial cell health and reactive hyperemia (the ability of blood vessels to expand and increase blood flow).
The findings revealed that anger impaired the ability of blood vessels to dilate, restricting blood flow for up to forty minutes post-recall, a phenomenon not observed with other emotions.
Dr. David Spiegel from Stanford University, who was not involved in the study, noted that anger triggers the body’s “fight or flight” response, releasing stress hormones like adrenaline and noradrenaline, which cause physiological changes such as increased heart rate and blood pressure.
A 2014 Harvard study highlighted that the risk of a cardiovascular event like a heart attack or stroke increases significantly following an angry outburst, especially within the first two hours. Frequent anger episodes amplify this risk.
While the precise mechanisms by which anger contributes to cardiovascular risk are still being explored, this study underscores the profound impact of emotional health on physical well-being.
“It reminds us that the mind is indeed connected to the body,” Spiegel said. “Transient, but intense experiences of anger seem to affect cardiovascular stimulation of blood flow.”
