Among several research lines developed within the Longitudinal Study of the Adult Health (ELSA – Brasil), the thesis by Priscila Rocco, under the advisory of Prof. Itamar de Souza Santos, of the Clinical Medicine Department of FMUSP, was highlighted in the Journal of the American Heart Association (JAHA), a publication of the American Heart Association, based in the USA.

The work, titled Work-Family Conflict and Ideal Cardiovascular Health Score in the ELSA-Brasil Baseline Assessment, held a transversal study with over 11 thousand participants, having found a strong association between cardiovascular health and conflicts relating to work and family.

“People who relate some conflict between work and family, meaning, family relations interfering at work or vice-versa, were those who presented worst cardiovascular health and this is a phenomenon which occurs mainly amongst women. Besides, those were also the ones who presented bad lifestyles, from the point of view of physical activity and other habits which influence cardiovascular health”, says Priscila’s advisor.

“The work is a good example of how the distinct knowledge of ELSA-Brasil provide relevant and interesting understanding on both scientific and public policy spheres. The theme is very current, considering the modern shapes of home-based work”, says the main coordinator of the ELSA-Brasil and FMUSP professor, Paulo Andrade Lotufo.

According to Santos, the article in the Journal of the American Heart Association highlighting the work is one more encouragement to proceed with this line of research. “Now, it’s important to proceed with this group to know how other people, who also live under this kind of stress, can keep a good cardiovascular health, meaning, we intend to understand what kind of protection they develop so there isn’t an increased risk of cardiovascular disease”, says Santos.