The effects of cognitive and physical stress on cardiovascular reactivity among smokers and oral contraceptive users.

Abstract

ABSTRACTBlood pressure and heart rate responses to cognitive (mental arithmetic) and physical (cold pressor) stress were monitored in four groups of women: 1) smokers/non oral contraceptive (OC) users, 2) non‐smokers/OC users, 3) smokers/OC users, and 4) non‐smokers/non‐OC users (control). All subjects were reactive to both types of stress. The results suggest that oral contraceptive use among smokers may enhance systolic blood pressure reactivity to cognitive stress when compared to smokers/non‐OC users. Also, OC use among women with a parental history of heart disease was marginally associated with elevated systolic and diastolic blood pressure responses to the cold pressor test. These findings suggest that oral contraceptive use may interact with smoking and parental history of heart disease and warrant further investigation.