Language: English
The healthcare portal for patients and the general public in Europe
This service contains links to third party websites. EPG Patient Direct is not in a position to verify this information and cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of the content contained.
27 Jun 2008
Continuing to work when tired may seem virtuous and often necessary, but researchers have found that it could have serious health implications.
Psychologists at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) suggest that, based on new findings, cardiovascular systems are forced to work harder when exhausted people keep working, increasing blood pressure levels .
The research, published in the latest issue of the International Journal of Psychophysiology, demonstrated that people who were tired had higher increases in blood pressure than rested individuals when faced with a task to complete.
Study leader, UAB psychologist Dr Rex Wright, said: "Our findings are relevant to health because of links that have been established between cardiovascular responsiveness and negative health outcomes, including hypertension and heart disease.
"Individuals who experience chronically exaggerated cardiovascular responses are believed to be at greater health risk than individuals who do not. Thus, the implication is that chronic fatigue may pose a health risk under some performance conditions."
Recent research published in the European Heart Journal indicates that measuring heart rate when resting can be a sign of how vulnerable elderly patients with hypertension and coronary artery disease are to suffering a stroke.
More health news
Delicious
Reddit
Facebook
StumbleUpon
