Regular exercise and formal cardiac rehabilitation programs are recommended to reduce stress-related mortality risk in cardiovascular disease, though successful population-level interventions are lacking.
Does stress reduction through exercise and cardiac rehabilitation reduce cardiovascular disease risk and mortality?
This review highlights the under-appreciated role of psychosocial stress in CVD risk and emphasizes regular exercise and cardiac rehabilitation as key strategies for stress reduction and mortality risk improvement.
Traditional risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) have long been the focus of preventive strategies. The impact of family stress, depression, anxiety, hostility, pessimism, job strain, social isolation, lack of purpose in life and social support, are well recognized risks for CVD development, however they are under-appreciated in clinical practice guidelines. The purpose of this article is to review the impact of acute and chronic stress on CVD risk, elaborate repositioning in guidelines, with emphasis to approaches for stress reduction. Regular exercise, both aerobic and resistance, leads to better adaptiveness to other types of stress, however, it remains unknown whether the total amount of stress one can receive before negative health effects is unlimited. Evidently, marked reductions in stress related disorders are shown following formal cardiac rehabilitation programs. Attendance of cardiac rehabilitation is highly recommended for the stress-related mortality risk reduction. Innovative approaches to offset the broad challenges that CVD pose, augmented by sustained exposure to stress, are desperately needed, but hindered by a lack of successful population-level interventions that promote lasting change.
Popović et al. (Sat,) conducted a review in Cardiovascular disease. Stress reduction, exercise, and cardiac rehabilitation was evaluated. Regular exercise and formal cardiac rehabilitation programs are recommended to reduce stress-related mortality risk in cardiovascular disease, though successful population-level interventions are lacking.