The Good News about the Heart-Mind Connection

What is exciting about the new discoveries of the close connection between the heart and the mind is that we can use this knowledge to improve our mental and physical health.

Many research studies have revealed that that the risk of developing heart disease is significantly increased for people who routinely experience anger or frustration. These emotions can cause stress blood vessels to constrict, blood pressure to rise, hormone levels to increase, and the immune system to weaken. If these emotions are not handled well and continue over time, they can place a serious strain on the heart.

7194920984_ebd03ec921_zIt is not an overstatement to say that brain health and heart health go hand in hand. While they once thought, a healthy heartbeat was steady like a metronome, scientists now know that a healthy heart has a normal variability to its beat. This heart rate variability (HRV) is a prime indicator of our health and fitness. A healthy heart is primed and ready for whatever situation may come its way, in the same way a professional tennis player sways back and forth ready to receive a serve.

Findings by the HeartMath Research Center, show that the heart produces a distinctly different rhythm pattern when an individual is angry than when one is feeling gratitude or compassion. If you have felt your heart pound when someone has insulted you, you probably don’t need an electrocardiogram to show you that your heart beat is erratic with up and down movements. However, when have positive emotions, your heartbeat usually appears to be rolling and smooth.

Photo credit: http://pixabay.com/en/cliffs-demolition-edge-risk-warning-509915/ and https://www.flickr.com/photos/18909153@N08/7194920984

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