According to a concerning study released on Monday, women who have been stalked are over 40% more likely to suffer from heart disease and stroke. According to data on intimate partner abuse gathered by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, almost one in three women have experienced stalking at some time in their life.

Published in the American Heart Association’s premier journal Circulation, cardiovascular research rarely addresses common forms of violence against women, such as stalking or stalking harassment behaviors that make them feel afraid, like receiving unsolicited correspondence.

According to experts from Harvard University in the US and the University of British Columbia in Canada, “psychological distress may be the cause of the association between stalking and cardiovascular disease, as it may disrupt the nervous system, impair proper blood vessel function, and negatively affect other biological mechanisms.”

Interestingly, the study also discovered that women who were granted protection through a restraining order were 70% more likely to suffer from cardiovascular disease.

A restraining order is a court order intended to restrict communication between the victim and the offender. Getting a restraining order was seen as an indication of extreme violence.

The findings, which were based on data for over 66,000 women with an average age of 46, examined the development of heart disease or stroke, restraining orders, and stalking among participants between 2001 and 2021.

According to the data, around 6% of the women in the study stated they had gotten a restraining order, and nearly 12% of them reported having been stalked.

Over the course of the 20-year trial, around 3% of all women reported having a new-onset cardiac condition or stroke.

Other self-reported cardiovascular risk variables, including health and lifestyle habits, medications, health conditions, childhood maltreatment, and symptoms of depression, did not change the higher risks for heart attack and stroke linked to stalking and restraining orders.

According to Rebecca B. Lawn, a research associate in epidemiology at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston, stalking is sometimes perceived as a type of violence that does not entail physical contact, which could downplay its seriousness.

However, she added, it might be “chronic” and cause major changes in women. According to Lawn, additional study and education for medical professionals are required to fully comprehend the connection between women’s cardiovascular health and stalking or obtaining a restraining order.

“We also need to give women resources and support and raise awareness about the possible health risks of experiencing violence,” she stated.