Stress has been associated with an increased risk of heart problems for decades. When we are under stress, the body triggers a series of biochemical changes that course through the bloodstream and affect different body systems.
However, the biological mechanisms that explain this link are not yet fully understood.
A new one, published in April in The Journal of Physiologysought to establish this relationship. The researchers concluded that acute psychological stress can trigger changes associated with blood clottingoffering a possible explanation for some of its effects on the cardiovascular system.
Em few minutesparticipants registered a increased production of free radicals, highly reactive molecules that constitute a marker of oxidative stress. At the same time, there were changes in the structure of clots blood vessels, making them larger and with a denser and more compact fibrin network.
According to , these changes can temporarily induce a state of hypercoagulabilitythat is, a greater predisposition to the formation of clots. Although this phenomenon was already known, the mechanisms responsible remained unclear.
To investigate this hypothesis, scientists carried out a randomized, controlled crossover study with eight healthy menbetween 18 and 30 years old. Each participant completed two laboratory sessions, one week apart.
During one of the visits, they sat in silence and rested. In the other, they were subjected to Trier Social Stress Testa widely used protocol to induce psychological stress through speech in front of evaluators and mental calculation exercises.
Before and after each session, blood samples were collected to analyze oxidative stress markers and clot characteristics.
During the rest session, biochemical parameters remained stable. After the stress test, researchers observed an increase in free radical ascorbatoa marker of oxidative stress, as well as evidence of activation of the intrinsic coagulation pathway.
In contrast, no significant changes in blood viscosity were detected, suggesting that stress does not make the blood “thicker”, but temporarily modify the way clots form and organize.
The authors emphasize, however, that the results must be interpreted with caution. The study involved just eight participants, all young, healthy men, so it will be necessary larger studies and with more diverse populations to confirm these conclusions.
Although research does not demonstrate that episodes of stress directly cause heart attacks or strokes, it reinforces the hypothesis that acute psychological stress can trigger transient biological changes capable of increasing the blood’s clotting potential.
In the future, researchers argue that better understanding these biochemical pathways could pave the way for new strategies to protect the cardiovascular system the physical effects of stress.
