Taking a vacation reduces cardiovascular disease risk: study

Travelling is rejuvenating to the mind, body, and soul – for more than just one reason. While it’s a great break from the usual, assuming you’re away from the hustle bustle you’re usually used to, travel exposes you to a multitude of things that changes your perspective towards life. Naturally, taking a break to travel then helps you renewed enthusiasm and ready to face new challenges. But, did you know a new study claims that traveling also helps reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases?
According to the study published in Psychology and Health Journal, people who take time off to travel have a lesser probability for health diseases as vacations help people reduce these symptoms.
Bryce Hruska, Assistant Professor at Syracuse University, US, said, “What we found is that people who went on vacation more frequently in the past 12 months have a lowered risk for metabolic syndrome and metabolic symptoms.”
“Metabolic syndrome is a collection of risk factors for cardiovascular disease. If you have more of them you are at higher risk of cardiovascular disease. This is important because we are actually seeing a reduction in the risk for cardiovascular disease the more vacationing a person does. Because metabolic symptoms are modifiable, it means they can change or be eliminated,” Hruska added.

Bryce Hruska, Assistant Professor at Syracuse University, US, said, “What we found is that people who went on vacation more frequently in the past 12 months have a lowered risk for metabolic syndrome and metabolic symptoms.”
“Metabolic syndrome is a collection of risk factors for cardiovascular disease. If you have more of them you are at higher risk of cardiovascular disease. This is important because we are actually seeing a reduction in the risk for cardiovascular disease the more vacationing a person does. Because metabolic symptoms are modifiable, it means they can change or be eliminated,” Hruska added.
For the study, 63 employees who were eligible or those who volunteered to pay were selected by the research team. The subjects were also asked to take blood tests and completed interviews assessing vacationing behaviour in the past 12 months.
The study’s findings showed that the risk for metabolic syndrome decreased by nearly a quarter with each additional vacation taken by participants.


“One of the important takeaways is that vacation time is available to nearly 80 percent of full-time employees, but fewer than half utilize all the time available to them. Our research suggests that if people use more of this benefit, one that’s already available to them, it would translate into a tangible health benefit,” Hruska concluded.