Can you really die from happiness?

For a long time, scientists have known that sad events, such as the loss of a close family member, can trigger a condition known as ‘broken heart syndrome’ – this feels like a heart attack, and can prove to be fatal if it is not treated quickly. However, a recent study has shown that a similar outcome can be triggered by over-excitement from happy events, and they have termed this ‘happy heart syndrome.’ It turns out that my irritable grumpiness is actually a form of self-preservation – you can indeed die from happiness.

‘Broken heart syndrome’ is a type of cardiomyopathy that is characterised by a sudden and temporary weakening of the muscular portion of the heart. This weakening is normally triggered by emotional stress – 85% of all cases were set in motion by either a mental or physical stressor (something like surgery, having a stroke, or acute asthma) – and it causes the left chamber of the heart to blow up like a balloon. The condition is also known as ‘takotsubo syndrome’ – it comes from the Japanese word for a type of octopus trap, which the ventricle resembles after having blown up.

It turns out that my irritable grumpiness is actually a form of self-preservation – you can indeed die from happiness

The condition was first identified in 1990, and following its discovery, doctors at the University Hospital Zurich in Switzerland have been compiling a database of worldwide attacks, which is currently at 1750 patients. Now, despite the presumption that only negative emotions cause this condition, 20 people found that their attacks were brought on by happy events – birthdays, weddings, the birth of a child or grandchild.

Now, a lot more research is needed into the phenomenon to be able to understand the exact mechanisms that underlie the ‘happy’ and the ‘sad’ heart variants (and whether, indeed, there is a difference between the two at all). However, Dr Christian Templin, the principle investigator from the University Hospital Zurich, said he believes “that broken heart syndrome is a classic example of an intertwined feedback mechanism, involving the psychological and/or physical stimuli, the brain and the cardiovascular system”. He when on to add that it seemed that “both happy and sad life events, although they are clearly distinct, share common pathways in the central nervous system output.”

It is, however, rarely fatal – most patients survive the initial acute event

This is a problem that mainly affects women (in particular, postmenopausal women). 95% of all the patients in the database are female, with an average age of 65, and often a history of recent severe emotional or physical stress. Scientists believe that this is because oestrogen causes the release of catecholamine and glucocorticoid (two types of steroid hormone) in response to mental stress. It is, however, rarely fatal – most patients survive the initial acute event, with a very low rate of complications and an excellent long-term prognosis. Infrequently, recurrence of the condition has been reported, which seems to be linked to the nature of the trigger.

Further information can be found here: http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/recent