# Cardiovascular health (“Life’s Essential 8”), risk of depression and anxiety: a prospective cohort study

## TL;DR

Poor cardiovascular health is linked to a higher risk of depression and anxiety in middle-aged and older adults.

## Contribution

This study provides new evidence on the association between Life’s Essential 8 cardiovascular health score and incident depression/anxiety.

## Key findings

- A 100-point decrease in CVH score was associated with a 13.3% increased risk of depression/anxiety.
- Lower health behaviors scores were more strongly linked to depression than anxiety.
- Improving cardiovascular health behaviors may help reduce the risk of late-life mental health issues.

## Abstract

There is a growing interest in the linkage of cardiovascular health (CVH) with depression/anxiety but the evidence of “Life’s Essential 8” CVH score is scarce. We evaluated the associations of CVH score with risk of incident depression/anxiety among ~0.4 million participants. During follow-up, 17,554 incident events with symptoms of either disorder were recorded. Per 100-point decrease in CVH score was associated with an increased risk of incident either disorder (Hazard ratio [HR] = 1.133, 95% confidence interval [CI]:1.114–1.153), depression (HR = 1.205, 95% CI:1.180–1.231), and anxiety (HR = 1.042, 95% CI:1.017–1.069). Per 100-point decrease in health assessments or health behaviors was associated with an increased risk of incident either disorder (HRhealth assessments = 1.085, 95% CI: 1.058–1.113, HRhealth behaviors = 1.217, 95% CI: 1.186–1.250). Poor CVH is a risk factor for the incident late-life depression/anxiety symptoms of middle-aged and older adults, and healthy behaviors could be targeted for the risk assessment and intervention of depression/anxiety.