Study shows frequent anger can increase the risk of a heart attack or stroke [Video]

Anger might just be a deadly sin after all. A new study found that people who frequently get mad may have an increased risk of developing heart disease.

Repeated feelings of anger appear to affect the blood vessels’ ability to open, according to the research published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

The type of vascular impairment observed in the study is a known forerunner to long-term damage that can lead to heart attack and stroke, said the National Institutes of Health, which funded the study.

Researchers from Columbia University Irving Medical Center, St. John’s University in New York and other institutions conducted their study with 280 healthy adults between 18 to 73 years old in the New York City area. The participants did not have a history of smoking, were not on any medications and did not have a history of diagnosed mood disorders.

They were randomly separated into four groups and given various tasks to elicit anger, sadness, anxiety or maintain a neutral emotional state.

…