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Loneliness after retirement may be one of the causes of heart attacks and strokes in older people. This non-obvious factor in the development of life-threatening conditions has been revealed by emergency medicine consultant Professor Rob Gallaway, writes the Daily Mail.
According to the doctor, the mechanism of how loneliness affects cardiovascular function is extremely complex, but boils down to the person experiencing stress, which leads to an increase in blood pressure. ‘In addition, the stress response affects chemicals in the body called cytokines. These cause inflammation, which is a recognised cause of premature ageing,’ Gallaway revealed.
