February 2015
&
Link Between Mental Illness and
Risk of Heart Disease, Stroke
Embassy Suites Lexington
Raises more than $15,000
Supports pediatric palliative and hospice patients cared for
by Hospice of the Bluegrass
In five years, Embassy Suites
Lexington has raised more than
$15,000 to support pediatric palliative and hospice patients cared for
by Hospice of the Bluegrass. Their
annual Breakfast with Santa event is
fun for the whole family and touches
many lives.
Pictured, L–R: Ralph Mordocco,
Embassy Suites General Manager;
Liz Fowler, Hospice of the Bluegrass
President and CEO; Santa (Bill
Bryant) and Amy Stamper, Embassy
Suites Sales Account Manager
People with mental health disorders may be at
much higher risk of heart disease or stroke than the
general population, per a new study recently presented
at the 2014 Canadian Cardiovascular Congress in
Vancouver. Previous studies have associated mental
health disorders with increased risk of cardiovascular
problems. Researchers analyzed data from the Canadian
Community Health Survey involving patients with
schizophrenia, bipolar, major depression and anxiety
disorders. They also assessed patients’ use of medication
for their mental health disorders. The drugs used
included antipsychotic medications, antidepressants,
psychoactive medication (benzodiazepine) and moodstabilizing drugs. They further looked at the incidence
of cardiovascular events among participants. They found
that patients who had a mental illness at any point in
their life were twice as likely to have had a stroke or
experience heart disease as the general population,
while patients who had not experienced heart disease
or stroke had a higher long-term risk of cardiovascular
disease. Furthermore, patients who used psychiatric
medications for their mental illness were twice as likely
to have heart disease and three times as likely to have had
a stroke as those who did not use such medications. The
researchers suspect three causes for this increased risk of
cardiovascular problems among mental health patients:
Lifestyle choices usually adopted by the mentally ill
(alcohol, smoking, poor eating and sleeping habits and
lack of exercise), the medications because they can cause
weight gain and interfere with the body’s breakdown of
fats and sugars, and a “separation between primary and
mental health services.” The researchers recommend
improved integration and collaboration between the
patient’s health professionals, and also that mental
health patients require closer attention from health care
providers. Approximately 1 in 4 adults in the United
States experience some form of mental illness in any
given year, per the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
About 1 in 17 adults live with a severe mental illness,
such as major depression, schizophrenia or bipolar
disorder.
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