ergo-log.com

Definition: "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance "

30.03.2017

Conflictive and stressful relationships are fatal

The negative health effect of relationships that are characterised by conflict and stress are of the same order as - for example - a diet that's full of trans fatty acids and refined carbohydrates. Or sharing workspace with a chain-smoking colleague. This emerged from a Danish study published in 2014 in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.

Study
The researchers followed a group of almost ten thousand Danes aged 36-52 from 2000 to 2011. In 2000 the researchers interviewed the participants about the amount of stress in their relationships with their partner, children and other family members. The Danes made a distinction between stress in the form of conflict and stress in the form of care-related worrying.

Results
Participants with a partner who demanded a lot of them, or whom the participants were very worried about, were more likely to die than participants who were in a better situation.

The effect of conflict was even stronger. Whether it involved a life partner, children, other family members (grandparents, parents, brothers and sisters, or cousins) or neighbours, conflictive relationships resulted in a significant and big increase in likelihood of dying.

When it came to demanding relationships, men were more vulnerable than women. "In this study, we found that men were especially vulnerable to frequent worries/demands from their partner, contradicting earlier findings suggesting that women were more vulnerable to stressful social relations, but in line with others which suggest that men respond to stressors with increased levels of cortisol, which may increase their risk of adverse health outcomes," the researchers wrote.

Perhaps men are less good at dealing with care-related stress than women, is our interpretation. Or perhaps women saddle men more with their problems than the other way around.

When it comes to the fatal effect of conflict, having a paid job offers protection. Work offers people the possibility to protect themselves from stress.

Conclusion
"This study suggests that stressful social relations, ranging from partner to neighbours, are associated with mortality risk among middle-aged men and women," the researchers wrote. "Frequent conflicts were associated with higher mortality risk regardless of the person who was the source of the conflict. Worries and demands concerning partner and children were also associated with increased mortality risk."

"Skills in handling worries and demands from close social relations as well as conflict management within couples and families and also in local communities may be considered important strategies for reducing premature deaths."

Source:
J Epidemiol Community Health. 2014 Aug;68(8):720-7.

More:
Cynical over 65s more likely to develop dementia 21.06.2014

Archives:
Psychology of Longevity
Psychology
Longevity