Bullying increases the risk of cardiovascular disease in women

Women who have experienced stalking or received a restraining order have a significantly higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to a 20-year study published in Circulation .

The analysis, conducted using data from the Nurses' Health Study II on 66,270 women between the ages of 36 and 56, revealed that those who had been stalked had a 41% increased risk of CVD, while those who had a restraining order—generally associated with episodes of serious violence—had a 70% increased risk. The greatest risk was seen in women who had experienced both situations.

“For many people, bullying doesn’t seem serious because it doesn’t involve physical contact, but its psychological and physical consequences can be profound,” says Karestan Koenen, a professor of psychiatric epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and senior author of the study.

Until now, most research on violence and cardiovascular health has focused on physical aggression, largely ignoring psychological violence.

The authors point out that the psychological distress caused by stalking can alter the nervous system, damage vascular function, and trigger biological changes that promote heart disease. They call for stalking and other forms of violence against women to be considered health determinants as important as smoking or poor diet, and they call for improved detection in healthcare centers and for strengthening public prevention policies.