We are naturally social creatures. We come into the world by way of a social system; a family. From that day forward we experience all kinds of social relationships, in our neighborhoods schools, jobs, churches, and in our daily communications.
So when we read that Social Support is a risk factor of heart disease, we don’t give it much attention because it seems normal and everyday.
If you think that social support is just talk…here are two studies to think about:
1. The Stockholm Female Coronary Risk Study, examined 131 women aged, 35 to 65 years, who were hospitalized for an acute coronary event. The study found that women with little or no social support were two and one half times more likely to have serious coronary artery disease than women with strong social support.
2. The Honolulu Heart Program, studied 4,653 men, asking about their social interactions with relatives and coworkers. The study found that the larger a man’s social network was, the less likely he was to experience angina, a heart attack or any type of heart disease.
Even today, with all we know about the risk factors of heart disease, we aren’t totally sure why Social Support is significant. Some research has shown that people with low social support have higher systolic blood pressure and heart rates than people with high social support.
Regardless of what the research will ever tell us, I believe that from their first beats, our hearts know what they need to stay strong and healthy…
other hearts.