dil kisi la torna acha nahi (it can be a reason of death, scientific report)

Scientists have confirmed that, if certain circumstances align, the chance of you dying after losing a loved one is significantly higher.

A person's risk of heart attack increases 21 times the normal level within the first day of loss, and can remain up to six times higher during the first week.

A combination of stress, lack of sleep and not remembering to take medication is behind the risk, The Telegraph in the UK reported.

"Caretakers, healthcare providers, and the bereaved themselves need to recognise they are in a period of heightened risk in the days and weeks after hearing of someone close dying," Doctor Murray Mittleman, a preventive cardiologist and epidemiologist at Harvard Medical School in the United States, said.

click on read more for more

The study is the first to focus on the risk of heart attack in the first days and weeks after losing a loved one.

The study found that those with high-risk factors had as high as a one in 320 chance of cardiac arrest. Those with low-risk factors had a one in 1394 chance.

Previous research had found that grieving spouses had an increased risk of dying, with up to 53 per cent of deaths coming from strokes or heart disease.

According to the research, people who are suffering from grief from the death of a loved one experience less sleep, low appetite and higher cortisol levels, which can be factors that increase the risk of heart attack.

Increased blood pressure, heart rate and blood clotting can occur when people suffer from intense grief and are also factors.

Forgetting to take medication during this traumatic period also adds to the risk, Elizabeth Mostofsky, lead author of the research, said.

She added: "Friends and family of bereaved people should provide close support to help prevent such incidents, especially near the beginning of the grieving process.

"Similarly, medical professionals should be aware that the bereaved are at much higher risk for heart attacks than usual."

Dr Mittleman added: "During situations of extreme grief and psychological distress, you still need to take care of yourself and seek medical attention for symptoms associated with a heart attack."