Women who experienced stalking or obtained restraining orders have higher risk of heart disease, study finds

"It got worse, she says, when she tried to leave. "You just don't know if you can sustain living that way," said Dosanjh, who then chose to get an order of protection against her then-husband. The toll on her health started to show. "I had abnormal stress tests," Dosanjh said. "I had to have a cardiac catheterization." And she's not alone according to a study released last month by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health."

"Of those in the survey, 11.7% reported experience with stalking, and 5.6% reported experience with obtaining a restraining order. The study, published in the scientific journal Circulation, found that the risk for cardiovascular disease was 41% higher in women who had experienced stalking - and 70% higher for women who had obtained a restraining order - compared to those who had not."

A long-term survey of 66,270 American nurses ages 36 to 56 tracked health from 2001 to 2021. Reported experiences included 11.7% with stalking and 5.6% with obtaining restraining orders. Cardiovascular disease risk was 41% higher among women who experienced stalking and 70% higher among those who obtained a restraining order, compared with women without such experiences. Adjustments for diet, exercise, and other health factors did not account for the increased risk. Personal accounts link stalking and domestic violence with severe stress and cardiac events.

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