| The Apple of Your Eye Helps Lower Your Blood Pressure, Too |
|
|
|
advertisement
|
By Lee Bowman
Scripps Howard News Service Your heart may or may not skip a beat, but your blood pressure tends to fall when you're with your spouse or significant other, according to a new study. In a study of 117 people, monitored continuously for six days, Brooks Gump of the State University of New York at Oswego and colleagues found that both systolic (beating heart) and diastolic (resting heart) blood pressure measurements were lower during periods of interaction with a life partner than with any other person, or than when people were alone. The researchers noted that the subjects' blood pressure didn't vary greatly between different social situations -- they were about 1 to 1.5 points different -- but that the changes were consistent and statistically significant. On a population-wide basis, the small effects could have a substantial impact, the researchers report Tuesday in the May issue of Psychosomatic Medicine. One in four American adults have high blood pressure, and hypertension is a contributor to the deaths of more than 200,000 Americans each year. "It's an intriguing possibility that the effects of partner interactions on (blood pressure) may partially account for the association between marital status and cardiovascular health,'' Gump said. Numerous studies have shown that married men and women are at less risk from heart disease. Surprisingly, the lower blood pressure effect of being with a partner was about the same among those who said they were in less satisfying relationships as among those who reported being in a satisfying relationship. But those who were less happy with their partner spent less time with them. "Given that most interactions with a well-established partner are safe or predictable, a partner's presence may act as a classically conditioned safety signal,'' Gump said. "Non-partner interactions, however, because they may occur less frequently and involve greater uncertainty, may be more likely to be associated with a defense reaction or heightened vigilance,'' Gump said. The researchers also found that subjects' blood pressure rose when they were talking to someone else, but that the increases were smaller when the subjects were with their partners than with someone else, even a friend. The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute sponsored the study. (Lee Bowman covers health and science for Scripps Howard News Service. Contact him at bowmanl@shns.com.)
| 
