Strong social support can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in postmenopausal women

A study based on data from the Women's Health Initiative demonstrates the relationship between psychological factors and health in postmenopausal women

Having good friends can save your life. A study based on data from the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) shows how strong social support can reduce the risk of death from cardiovascular disease in postmenopausal women. The results of the study are published online today in Menopause, the journal of the North American Menopause Society (NAMS).

Although CVD morbidity and mortality rates have declined in recent decades, CVD remains the leading cause of death among Americans. Traditionally considered as an essentially male disease, CVD rates in women have almost reached those of men (35.9% of American women have CVD compared to 37.4% of men).

With so many people with CVD, a lot of research has been done on its various risk factors (although the focus has so far been on traditional risk factors such as smoking and hypertension) . Some studies have focused on the effect of social support, but this recent study is the largest to date to badess the effect of social support on CVD and all-cause mortality among women.

After nearly 11 years of follow-up with IPS participants, the researchers concluded that in women without CVD at baseline, perceived social support was badociated with a slightly lower risk of all-cause mortality. Although the badociation is described as modest, it remains significant. No major badociations have been observed in women with a history of CVD. The researchers hypothesized that these results demonstrate the benefits of social support by promoting stress relief or helping to alleviate stressful life events. However, they indicated that further clarification and investigation was needed.

The results of the study appear in the article "Perceived Social Support and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease and All-Cause Mortality in the Women's Health Initiative" Observation Study ".

"This study found a weak but significant badociation between perceived social support and mortality among women without previous cardiovascular disease," said Dr. JoAnn Pinkerton, Executive Director of NAMS. "If psychological or social support can help prevent heart disease in women, we need additional studies to determine which support would be most helpful."