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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Heart disease linked to childhood abuse
TORONTO -- Childhood abuse may be a predictor for heart disease in adult life, suggests a study published this week by the University of Toronto.
The study, which appeared online in the Child Abuse and Neglect journal, used 2005 Statistics Canada data on 13,000 adults living in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Seven per cent of respondents reported they had been abused as children by someone close to them, and four per cent said they had been diagnosed with heart disease as adults. "What we found was that people who were abused had 45 per cent higher odds of having heart disease than those who weren't," said study co-author Esme Fuller-Thomson on Friday. "A few studies have found similar links between these two variables. It's an emerging trend."
She said the researchers took into account a number of factors linked to heart disease, such as poverty and family history and found there was no substantial impact on the findings.
Fuller-Thomson, who is a social work and medical professor, said further research needs to be conducted to be able to explain physiologically why childhood physical abuse may trigger heart disease. One theory is that victimized children have to relate to how much cortisol, also known as the "fight or flight" or stress hormone they have in their bodies.
"These children are more likely to be always alert, they can't relax and become more vulnerable to stress because they worry whether they will be abused," she said. "Some literature has indicated that people with heart disease have higher rates of cortisol."
Another theory is that people with more stress are also more likely to have chronic inflammation, which is shown to be at higher rates in heart disease patients. "Child abuse is just one factor of many," said Fuller-Thomson. "I don't want people who experienced abuse to feel like they've been condemned to have heart disease. They have slightly higher odds and just need to be more vigilant in monitoring their weight and checking their blood pressure."
-- Postmedia News
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition July 24, 2010 C12
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