Aug. 25--Researchers have a new remedy for women who want to stave off heart disease: Take a dose of optimism.
More specifically, a new study of more than 97,000 post-menopausal women found that those with positive attitudes had a lower risk of developing heart disease than their pessimistic counterparts.
Their risk of developing heart disease was 9 percent lower, and the risk of dying from any cause was 14 percent lower for optimists, according to the review in "Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association."
"The majority of evidence suggests that sustained, high degrees of negativity are hazardous to health." wrote Hilary A. Tindle, lead author of the study and assistant medical professor at the University of Pittsburgh.
Wesley Chapel resident Janice Makar says she's living proof of the healing power of a positive attitude. She discovered during a routine checkup eight years ago that the main artery to her heart was 99 percent blocked. The then 36-year-old's plans to start a new workout regimen were quickly replaced by emergency bypass surgery.
"It happened so fast," she says, "I didn't have time to think 'whoa is me.' "
Instead she saw the scare as a challenge to improve her health. If doctors suggested she try to walk a mile, she walked two. Makar changed her eating and exercise behaviors, and at 44, she says she is healthier than ever.
"I didn't let the disease get to me," she says.
The University of Pittsburgh attitude study looked at females, ages 50 to 79, who participated in the national Women's Health Initiative and were free of cardiovascular disease and cancer at the study's start.
It tracked participant health patterns for more than eight years. It measured optimism and cynical hostility by the way the women answered questions such as "In unclear times, I usually expect the best," and "If something can go wrong for me, it will."
Results showed that optimists were less likely to develop risk factors such as: diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, depressive symptoms, smoking or being sedentary.
While issues such as genetics and diet play a role in a woman's chance for heart disease, researchers believe attitude does play a significant role.
"This study is a very reasonable stepping stone to future research in this area â€Ââ€? both on potential mechanisms of how attitudes may affect health, and for randomized controlled trials to examine if attitudes can be changed to improve health," Tindle wrote.
Makar is convinced her attitude is part of why she's well today, and she recalls a pessimistic relative who felt their heart disease was just a sign "they were getting to the grave faster."
That person is no longer living. Makar, however, was recently able to serve as a bone marrow donor for her 50-year-old sister. Had she not recovered and looked on the bright side, she wouldn't have been able to help, she says.
Anyone can benefit from optimism, Makar says. "Even if your body isn't 100 percent, if you're positive, you're at peace."
Want to share your health and fitness idea? Contact Mary Shedden at (813) 259-7365 or mshedden@tampatrib.com. And follow 4you's regular happenings on Twitter, @4youTampa.
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