Couples with mixed feelings for each other may be at an increased risk for a heart attack, a recent study by researchers at the University of Utah found.
"The most intriguing finding was that within a couple, only if both of them felt ambivalent towards their partner did you see this elevated (heart disease) risk," said Bert Uchino, the lead author of the study, reports Reuters.
The researchers based their study on interviews with nearly 140 couples, each married for more than 36 years. The average age of the participants was 63.
Both partners were asked their feelings for the other, including how often they were assisted by their counterparts at times when they required any help, advice or support.
Thirty percent of those involved expressed positive feelings about their partners, while the rest were more ambivalent.
Heart attack risk was then evaluated by using a CT scanner to check for overall calcification in the coronary arteries, with the researchers taking into account other heart attack factors like smoking and exercise.
The results showed that coronary artery calcification levels were higher for those couples who bore ambivalent feelings for each other. According to the researchers, in these relationships, couples were less likely help and support each other.
"The findings suggest that couples who have more ambivalent views of each other actively interact or process relationship information in ways that increase their stress or undermine the supportive potential in the relationship," Uchino said in press release. "This, in turn, may influence their cardiovascular disease risk."
