Social stress linked to harmful fat deposits, heart disease

A new study lead by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine shows that social stress could be a major precursor to heart disease by causing the body to deposit more fat in the abdominal cavity, speeding the harmful buildup of plaque in blood vessels, a stepping stone to the number one cause of death in the world.

According to Carol A. Shively, Ph.D., a professor of pathology and the study’s principal investigator, the findings could be an important consideration regarding the way the United States and other Western countries try to stem the rapid rise of obesity,

The study appears as the cover story of the current issue of Obesity, the peer-reviewed journal of the Obesity Society.