Heart disease is often linked to high cholesterol, obesity, or lack of exercise. However, there is mounting evidence that suggests that mental health plays a crucial role in cardiovascular well-being. Stress, anxiety, and depression can silently strain the heart, increasing the risk of serious complications.

A recent study, published in Nature Human Behaviour, showed that loneliness has a significant impact on proteins present in a person's blood. For the study, researchers used data from more than 42,000 participants to explore whether the 9.3% who reported social isolation and 6.4% who reported loneliness had different levels of proteins in their blood compared with those who did not. The researchers then studied data that tracked the health of participants over an average 14-year period.

"We found around 90% of these proteins are linked to the risk of mortality," Dr Chun Shen, Fudan University in China, who is also the lead researcher said. "In addition, about 50% of the proteins were linked to cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and stroke," he added.

Dr Shrey Kumar Srivastav, senior consultant at Sharda Hospital, said that subtle symptoms of heart disease, such as fatigue, shortness of breath, swelling in the lower legs, dizziness, and jaw pain, are often overlooked or attributed to stress and ageing. "Women, in particular, may experience atypical signs like extreme fatigue, indigestion, or upper abdominal pain instead of classic chest pain, leading to delayed diagnosis," he added.

Can Mental Health Issues Trigger Heart Diseases?

Chronic stress can trigger harmful cardiovascular effects, including elevated blood pressure, increased heart rate, and inflammation—key contributors to heart disease. Anxiety and depression further impact heart health by disrupting sleep patterns, raising stress hormone levels, and encouraging unhealthy habits like poor diet and inactivity.

Mental health issues like depression and anxiety have a profound impact on the heart. They don’t just affect emotions but can increase inflammation and put extra strain on the cardiovascular system, warns Dr Srivastav.

Certain risk factors, such as obesity and diabetes, disproportionately affect women, making them more vulnerable to heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). However, due to gender-specific symptom variations, heart disease in women often goes undiagnosed for longer.

Obesity is more prevalent in women than men and is a major risk factor for heart failure. Diabetes, too, has a greater impact on women’s heart health, yet diagnosis and treatment delays are common. Addressing this gap requires increasing awareness, training healthcare providers, and promoting early diagnostic tools,” explains Dr Srivastav.

How Can You Protect Your Heart?

A simple yet effective way to support heart health is by committing to a brisk 30-minute walk daily. Walking not only helps regulate blood pressure and manage weight but also improves circulation and reduces stress.

"Regular physical activity, paired with a heart-healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins, significantly lowers cardiovascular risks," advises Dr Srivastav.

Heart disease can often go undetected until a major event occurs, making routine screenings essential.

- For women: Begin screenings around age 30 and continue with regular checkups.

- For men: Start screenings at age 35.

Health screenings, including blood pressure checks, cholesterol tests, and electrocardiograms (ECGs), are critical for early detection of silent heart conditions.

Sleep disorders have long been associated with daytime fatigue, poor concentration, and memory problems. Now, a new neuroimaging study suggests that the impact of sleep disorders could be deeper.

Researchers have found that people with sleep disorders show structural changes in brain regions involved in attention, motivation, decision-making, and emotional regulation.

The findings, published in the Nature Portfolio journal Scientific Reports, are based on one of the largest neuroimaging meta-analyses examining structural changes in the brain across multiple sleep disorders.

Common Brain Changes Due To Sleep Disorders

Researchers analyzed data from numerous brain imaging studies involving people diagnosed with various sleep disorders. The following alterations were absorbed in different regions of the brain:

• The prefrontal cortex plays a key role in planning, attention, and decision-making.
• The anterior cingulate cortex, involved in emotional regulation, conflict navigating, and motivation.
• The thalamus, which helps regulate attention and acts as a communication link between different brain regions.
• The posterior cingulate cortex, associated with examining choices, memory, and internally directed thinking.

Sleep And Brain Health

According to the researchers, disrupted sleep may interfere with the brain's ability to maintain biological functions.

Rather than affecting a single region, sleep disorders appear to impact multiple interconnected networks in the brain.

This could be why many people with chronic sleep disorders experience symptoms beyond tiredness. Some of them are:

• Difficulty concentrating
• Slower thinking
• Poor decision-making
• Reduced motivation
• Emotional instability
• Problems with memory and attention

Also read: Pediatric Sleep: The Foundation Of Healthy Growth, Behavior And Society

These symptoms are commonly reported in conditions like insomnia, obstructive sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, and other chronic sleep disorders.

The new study adds to the evidence that healthy sleep is essential for maintaining optimum cognitive function.

Previous studies have linked sleep deprivation to poor attention, slower reflexes, increased dementia risk, and poor emotional processing.

They have also indicated that even chronic sleep deprivation can contribute to changes in brain health alongside metabolic and cardiovascular effects.

Also read: Why Are Sleep Disorder Cases Rising In Children Under 10 In South Korea?

Poor Sleep Can Also Affect Heart Health

In an earlier study, researchers discovered that even just three nights of insufficient sleep were enough to change blood chemistry, affecting heart health.

In the study, it was observed that the levels of proteins linked to a higher risk of heart disease and inflammation went up after just three nights of poor sleep.

It was further observed that while exercise had some positive effects on protein levels, it wasn't enough to completely eliminate the harm caused by not sleeping enough. Even with exercise, participants still showed increased levels of 16 proteins associated with heart disease.

The study points out how young and healthy people can face these negative biological changes from short-term sleep loss.

Bottomline

Persistent problems with falling asleep, staying asleep, excessive daytime sleepiness, or interrupted breathing during sleep deserve immediate medical attention.

As researchers continue to unravel how sleep shapes the brain, one message has become increasingly clear: quality sleep is not simply a time of rest. It is an essential biological process that supports physical health, attention span, decision-making, emotional well-being, and overall cognitive health.

Tiny plastic particles in the human body may cause serious heart attacks. A recent study observed that people who had microplastics present in their arteries supplying blood to the heart are more likely to experience severe heart attacks.

The study has raised concerns about the effects of plastic pollution on cardiovascular health.

Dangers Of Microplastics In Heart Arteries

A new study published in the European Heart Journal has found that people with microplastics present in the arteries supplying blood to the heart were more likely to experience larger and more severe heart attacks, raising concerns about the cardiovascular effects of plastic pollution.

Microplastics are plastic fragments smaller than five millimeters that originate from the breakdown of larger plastic items.

“Micro and nanoplastics are tiny plastic particles that are found virtually everywhere in the environment, including the air we breathe, the water we drink, and many foods we consume,” said Pasquale Paolisso, lead author of the study.

Although microplastics have already been detected in human blood, lungs, brain, and arteries, researchers are still trying to understand their long-term health effects.

Also read: Recovering From A Heart Attack? Avoid These Dangerous Mistakes

What Did The Study Find?

In the latest study, researchers analyzed 61 Italian patients who were treated for heart attacks and measured the presence of microplastics in blood collected from the coronary arteries.

Researchers also collected data on whether the patients were smokers and on their exposure to pollution.

“In our study, smoking history was strongly linked to microplastics in the blood. Our findings suggest that smoking might make it easier for micro and nanoplastics to enter the bloodstream via the lungs. Air pollution may act in a similar way,” Dr Emanuele Barbato, an author of the study from Sapienza University of Rome, said.

Scientists detected micro and nanoplastics in 84 per cent of patients who had heart attacks.

In comparison, only 40 per cent of patients with chronic ischemic heart disease and 32 per cent of patients with normal coronary arteries were found to have micro and nanoplastics.

Also read: US Senator & Trump's Close Ally Lindsey Graham Died Of Aortic Dissection: All About The Fatal Heart Emergency

They discovered that patients with higher levels of microplastics tended to have larger areas of heart muscle damage and greater inflammation, suggesting that these particles may be linked to more severe cardiovascular events.

“While the findings do not prove that plastics directly cause heart attacks, they strengthen the growing scientific evidence that plastic pollution is an emerging public health issue deserving serious attention,” said Thava Palanisami,” a plastic researcher at the University of Newcastle in Australia.

Built On A Landmark Study

The study is built on earlier research published in 2024, which found that patients whose arterial plaque contained microplastics and nanoplastics were more than four times as likely to suffer a heart attack, stroke, or death.

That landmark study was among the first to find that plastics accumulating inside blood vessels could have important clinical consequences.

Scientists believe microplastics may trigger chronic inflammation and oxidative stress, damage the cells lining blood vessels, and make fatty plaques in arteries more unstable. This could increase the likelihood of heart attacks.

Almost a year after the last Senate-confirmed director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), was fired for backing science and vaccines, President Donald Trump has nominated Dr. Erica Schwartz to head the agency, making her his third CDC nominee in less than two years.

Appearing before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) for her confirmation hearing on Wednesday, Schwartz pledged to restore public trust in the CDC through transparency and evidence-based decision-making.

However, she also faced pointed questions about vaccine policy, scientific independence, and whether she would resist pressure from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Erica Schwartz: 'I Will Never Betray Science'

Schwartz highlighted her military background and said restoring confidence in public health institutions would be her top priority.

"If confirmed, my first priority will be restoring trust in public health institutions through radical transparency and unwavering scientific integrity," she said.

"As CDC director, my sacred responsibility is to provide the American people with public health guidance that is clear, honest, and evidence-based. I will never betray science," she added.

Schwartz previously served as deputy US surgeon general during Trump's first administration and held the rank of rear admiral in the US Coast Guard.

Who Is Dr. Erica Schwartz?

Dr. Erica Schwartz is a physician with an extensive background in medicine, public health, engineering, and law. She holds a medical degree (MD), a Master of Public Health (MPH) in epidemiology, a law degree, and a degree in biomedical engineering.

Before being nominated to lead the CDC, Schwartz held several senior public health and military leadership roles, including:

• Serving as a Navy occupational medicine physician and clinical epidemiologist
• Joining the US Public Health Service, where she was detailed to the US Coast Guard
• Serving as the Chief Medical Officer of the US Coast Guard
• Serving as the Deputy US Surgeon General, where she helped oversee national public health initiatives and emergency preparedness.

Erica Schwartz Backs Vaccines, Calls for Autism Research

Throughout the hearing, Schwartz repeatedly expressed support for vaccines, including mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, and strongly endorsed vitamin K injections for newborns to prevent life-threatening bleeding.

She also acknowledged that scientific evidence does not support a link between vaccines and autism, while arguing that more research is needed to better understand the rising prevalence of autism.

"We owe it to the American people to figure out why one in 30 children now has autism," she said.

Schwartz stated that she did not believe either President Trump or Health Secretary Kennedy would ask her to take actions that would harm public health or violate the law.

She also said she was unaware of Kennedy's decision to cancel nearly $500 million in mRNA vaccine contracts and was unfamiliar with reported cuts to smoking cessation and food safety programmes.

Public Health Experts Express Concern

Although many observers consider Schwartz a qualified nominee with mainstream public health credentials, some experts said her testimony did not provide enough reassurance that she would independently defend scientific evidence if political pressure arose.

Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, chief executive of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, said she wanted stronger commitments to evidence-based science from leaders overseeing the nation's top public health institutions.

The hearing also renewed criticism of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s handling of the CDC.

Several Democratic senators, including Sen. Bernie Sanders, argued that former CDC director Dr. Susan Monarez was removed because she resisted Kennedy's vaccine policies.

"Dr. Monarez, to her credit, stood up for science, public health, and for the scientific method. Frankly, she stood up for protecting the well-being of the American people, and that was the reason that she was fired," Sanders said.

If confirmed by the Senate, Schwartz would replace Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, who’s been serving as acting CDC director since February.