Constipation Is a Risk Factor for Major Cardiac Events

Constipation may be a significant contributor to major cardiac events including strokes, heart attacks, and heart failure, new research suggests.

A number of risk factors are known to greatly increase the likelihood of major cardiac events, but a new study suggests that a common health issue may also play a larger role than previously thought: constipation.

That’s according to a new study published in the American Journal of Physiology-Heart and Circulatory Physiology, which found that constipation is an additional and significant risk factor for a variety of serious cardiovascular outcomes.

Researchers set out to understand the role constipation plays because traditional risk factors for heart disease — including hypertension, high cholesterol, and smoking — don’t entirely explain the occurrence of major cardiac events. And because constipation is already associated with an increased risk of several cardiovascular diseases, the authors hypothesized that constipation might just be an under-appreciated risk factor for these adverse outcomes.

Their research yielded concerning results.

After analyzing data from 408,354 participants in the UK Biobank, researchers identified 23,814 cases of constipation. They found that those suffering from the digestive condition were more than twice as likely to experience a major cardiac event than those who weren’t constipated.

They also found a strong connection between constipation and hypertension, discovering that individuals who suffered from both conditions had a 34% increased risk of subsequent cardiac events compared to those with hypertension alone.

"Our research suggests that constipation may exacerbate the cardiovascular risks associated with high blood pressure, further increasing the likelihood of heart attacks and strokes," said lead researcher Francine Marques, PhD, from the School of Biological Sciences at Monash University in Australia, in a news release.

The study also looked at the genetic component, finding that genetic factors likely play a role in the development of both constipation and many major cardiac events.

The findings suggest a strong connection between gut health and heart health — and researchers are now working to better understand the causal relationship between the two.

"With constipation affecting an estimated 14% of the global population, particularly older adults and women,” Marques said, “these findings suggest that a significant portion of the population may be at an increased risk of cardiovascular disease due to their bowel health.”