Occupational Status Moderates the Association Between Current Perceived Stress and High Blood Pressure

Abstract

H ypertension is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular mortality worldwide and has several known risk factors, such as obesity, smoking, and excessive alcohol or salt intake.1 However, most patients with hypertension lend great importance to psychological stress in the regulation of blood pressure (BP) and in the need for taking antihypertensive drugs.2 Although acute psychological stress is associated with a transient BP elevation, 3 epidemiological studies do not consistently show chronic psychological stress to affect BP in the long term.4 Some studies found positive associations between psychological stress and hypertension, 5,6 whereas others showed no 7,8 or even negative associations. 9,10Reasons for these conflicting results can be potentially attributed to differences in the evaluation of psychological stress (eg, objective measures versus subjective measures) or outcomes (eg, BP threshold values, use of antihypertensive drugs). As regards psychological stress, objective measures quantify the exposure to several kinds of stressors (eg, stressful life events, occupational stress), whereas subjective measures, such as perceived stress, quantify the psychological Abstract-Although lay beliefs commonly relate high blood pressure (BP) to psychological stress exposure, research findings are conflicting. This study examined the association between current perceived stress and high BP, and explored the potential impact of occupational status on this association.

Body Mass Index-Modified Relationship of Chronic Mental Stress With Resting Blood Pressure During 5 Years in Japanese Middle-Aged Male Workers

“…37 Further, an analogous finding that the association of current perceived stress with high BP was moderated by occupational status was recently reported. 38 As summarized by Bartolomucci et al, 39 further research examining the interaction between acute and chronic mental stress observed in animal experiments will be necessary to elucidate the probable bidirectional effect of chronic stress or the allostatic load 40 on BP in humans.…”

The ontogeny of chronic distress: emotion dysregulation across the life span and its implications for psychological and physical health

“…Timely acquisition of emotional control in infancy is associated with later psychosocial 96]. Psychopathology is also associated with obesity, metabolic syndrome, diabetes onset, and mortality through complex interactions between emotional, behavioral, and neuroendocrine systems [97,98,99].…”

Sex Differences in Clinical Characteristics, Psychosocial Factors, and Outcomes Among Patients With Stable Coronary Heart Disease: Insights from the STABILITY (Stabilization of Atherosclerotic Plaque by Initiation of Darapladib Therapy) Trial

“…Meanwhile, a group‐based stress‐reduction intervention program for women with previous MI or revascularization procedures was associated with improved survival compared with usual care 24. In the general population, the impact of stress on cardiovascular risk factors, specifically high blood pressure, might be mediated by the type of occupation; namely, higher stress levels are associated with high blood pressure in people with low occupational status but with lower blood pressure in those with a higher occupational status 25. This interaction with type of occupation is not likely to have mattered in the present study because many patients were past retirement age, and there was no difference between men and women regarding stress at work.…”