This physician essayist applauds the adoption of the American Heart Association’s 2020 Impact Goal to improve the cardiovascular health (CVH) of all Americans by 20 percent while reducing deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD) and stroke by 20 percent—by the year 2020.
Positive psychological well-being, especially optimism, protects against the incidence, and somewhat against the progression, of cardiovascular disease through a broad array of mechanisms, according to this extensive literature review.
Can a sense of purpose reduce your risk of heart attack? This study shows that greater baseline purpose in life was associated with lower odds of myocardial infarction.