Suspicious? Resentful? Cynical?
If those three words describe your personality, you may have more of a problem than just the lack of friends. Researchers at Arizona State University in Tempe have proven that people with hostile dispositions also have greater increases in diastolic blood pressure (the second number in a blood pressure reading).
A higher diastolic pressure means that the vessels in the body are under increased pressure even when the heart is between beats, a situation than can contribute to heart disease and stroke.
At the beginning of the study, the researchers designated 80 males and females as either high or low in hostility after taking a test measuring their suspiciousness, cynicism, mistrust, and resentment. Then each volunteer participated in a one-on-one discussion of capital punishment with a person who was trained to remain calm while presenting a point-of-view that disagreed with the volunteer’s.
The blood pressure of those who had been categorized as high-hostile began rising even before the conversation started, and they continued to have higher blood pressure readings than those categorized as low-hostile. This could mean, according to researchers, that people with hostile attitudes have high levels of mistrust and anticipate trouble in interpersonal relationships—even before they have proof that there is reason for suspicion.
Another factor that raised blood pressure of the people in the high-hostile group, according to researchers, was the need to control the situation between the person conducting the conversation and themselves.
Men and women whose scores placed them in the high-hostile group had similar increases in blood pressure.
Researchers examined the attitudes of nearly 1,100 men. The investigators from Brown University School of Medicine in Providence, Rhode Island, found that those with hostile attitudes were more likely to be overweight, especially in the upper part of the body which is a greater risk factor for heart disease than extra weight carried in the hips and legs. The subjects also were more likely to exhibit insulin resistance, often a precursor of diabetes.
A hostile attitude in this second study also appeared to be linked to lower income and educational status.