Effect of gratitude on cardiovascular health outcomes: a state-of-the-science review

Abstract

Positive psychological attributes, such as gratitude, play a critical role in improving cardiovascular health outcomes. Gratitude not only enhances psychological, and physical well-being but may also alter biomarkers of risk for cardiovascular disease. However, there are limited studies examining this. This paper provides a state-of-the-science review of the literature examining links between gratitude and cardiovascular health outcomes (biomarkers and adherence). Data sources included PubMed, Web of Science, and PsycINFO. Results of 13 studies (from an original pool of 234), both experimental (n = 11) and non-experimental (n = 2) show that gratitude positively impacts biomarkers such as endothelial dysfunction, prognostic inflammatory markers, and improves adherence to health behaviors. Heart disease produces immense health and economic burden in the United States and globally. These novel findings demonstrate that gratitude can be a low-cost intervention in health care that can lead to improved health behaviors and better cardiovascular outcomes for patients living with cardiovascular disease.