Australian researchers have found that people who lose a loved one can suffer a range of physical and emotional symptoms that put them at an increased risk of a heart attack.
Doctors at Sydney's Royal North Shore Hospital recruited 80 people who had recently lost someone close.
They found people who were suffering grief had higher blood pressure, increased heart rate and changes to their immune system.
The Heart Research Foundation's Dr Thomas Buckley says it is the first study to look in detail at physical changes people experience immediately after losing a loved one.
They found people who had suffered a loss had a six-fold increase in their risk of a heart attack.
The risk levelled out at six months and returned to normal after three years.
ABC September 15, 2009
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