By Dina ElBoghdady | Thw Washington Post
The stress of living near a foreclosed home may increase a person’s chances of developing high blood pressure, according to research published Monday in an American Heart Association journal called Circulation.
While foreclosures are known to drag down the values of neighboring properties, the new research suggests that they can also undermine the health of the neighbors themselves.
The study tracked 1,750 Massachusetts residents from 1987 through 2008 and found that each foreclosure within 100 meters of a person’s home affected their systolic blood pressure, the top number in the reading. The neighbors may be worried that foreclosures are hurting their home values or the safety of their communities, and that anxiety can boost blood pressure, the study said.
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