Can bowel movement indicate risk of heart attack? Here's what researchers found

Our body actually sends us signals through various symptoms that indicate an impending heart attack or a risk of a heart attack in the future. Our daily bowel movement frequency can be one such way of identifying any such cardiac arrest risks, says research. 

Researchers have examined the associations between bowel movement frequency and major vascular and non-vascular diseases outside the digestive system. 

Data of 487,198 participants from 10 different geographically diverse areas across China were collected between the age group of 30 to 79 years from 2004 to 2008. The participants did not have cancer, heart disease or stroke, at the start and they were observed for an average of 10 years.

Participants who have a bowel movement more than once a day had a higher risk of ischaemic heart disease (also called coronary heart disease) as compared to those who had bowel movements once a day. Coronary heart disease is often a precursor to having a heart attack.

This bowel movement trend was also seen with a range of other chronic complications, such as heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus and chronic kidney disease.

Researchers have also found that the lowest bowel movement frequency ("less than three times a week") also associates with higher risks of ischaemic heart disease, ischaemic stroke and chronic kidney disease.

The researchers concluded: "BMF (bowel movement frequency) was associated with future risks of multiple vascular and non-vascular diseases. The integration of BMF assessment and health counselling into primary care should be considered."

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