An emotion that can harm the heart: researchers reveal the deadly risks women face.

Heart diseases remain one of the leading causes of death worldwide for both men and women, with women being disproportionately affected. In Australia, one in three women dies from these conditions, yet women with cardiovascular diseases are often under-researched, under-diagnosed, and inadequately treated, leading to a significant mortality rate. A recent study, as reported by The Conversation, has revealed another hidden risk for women's heart health, which lies in their brains.

Alongside heart diseases, depression—which affects women nearly twice as often as men—exacerbates the risk of developing these conditions. A recent study from the University of Queensland indicated that women with a genetic predisposition to depression are at an increased risk for heart disease. This genetic correlation was not observed in men, highlighting a significant gender specificity in health within this area of research.

The strong link between the brain and heart has been previously identified and documented in existing studies, which show a higher risk of heart disease among individuals with depression. Various factors influence this connection, including side effects of psychiatric medications that can lead to weight gain and elevated cholesterol levels, as well as depression-related behaviors such as smoking and poor diet. However, the Queensland study, published in the journal Circulation Genomic and Precision Medicine, stands out by focusing on genetic predisposition rather than lifestyle or medication-related factors, and it shows that these genetic risks manifest differently in women.

This study, which included genomic and medical data from 345,000 participants in the UK, identified a clear connection between genetic risk for depression and an increased likelihood of developing conditions such as ischemic heart disease and heart failure in women, explains Jiaoyue-Clara Jiang, a human genomics researcher at the University of Queensland and author of the study. This connection was evident even among women without an official depression diagnosis or a history of psychiatric medication use, indicating inherent biological factors rather than behavioral influences, she clarifies.

The findings led scientists to suggest that genetic pathways influencing depression and heart disease in women may be interconnected, regardless of traditional risk factors such as body mass index, blood pressure, and smoking. Notably, the increased risk of heart disease persisted regardless of menopausal status, challenging common assumptions that link postmenopausal hormonal changes to the risk of cardiovascular complications.

Traditional heart disease risk calculators, including the Australian AusCVDRisk, may underestimate risk in women, focusing primarily on general risk factors, according to Jiang. In contrast, the British QRISK3 program includes depression diagnosis in its assessments but considers its impact as uniform across genders. This study advocates for a more nuanced approach, emphasizing the need to account for genetic predisposition to depression when evaluating cardiovascular disease risk specifically in women.

Younger women, who are often overlooked in heart disease prevention due to their presumed lower risk, could greatly benefit from early and frequent heart screenings, the authors suggest. This research underscores the necessity for new gender-specific medical studies and increased awareness to improve prevention and treatment of heart diseases in women.

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