ANN ARBOR, Mich. – We’ve all experienced that feeling when someone jumps out at us unexpectedly or the hair-raising suspense of a scary movie.
Many people love the spooky side of Halloween -- from elaborate haunted houses to seriously creepy costumes.
But what effect does all that frightening fun have on your heart? The truth is actually not so terrifying.
“The type of scare that you get from like a jump scare, a spooky thing. That’s actually your fight-or-flight system turning on,” explained Dr. Jesse Hansen, a pediatric cardiologist at the University of Michigan.
For the vast majority of people --
“If that turns on for a short amount of time, then that’s really not going to hurt anybody,” said Hansen.
But Hansen said there are some good guidelines for frightening fun.
“The way that I approach things like scares is that they should always be fun for everybody involved,” said Hansen. “And so both the scarer and the scaree should kind of know what they’re getting into and be able to kind of engage in that in in a way that everybody is enjoying it.”
That also applies to children.
“Obviously, there’s a trust-based element to that to where we need kids to have fun and to feel emotionally safe in these environments and a little jump scare from somebody that they know and love could be fun. But if that’s happening from strangers, that can probably be a traumatic experience, outside of any risks to their heart.”
People with pre-existing heart conditions should be more cautious with certain activities.
“If you do have some sort of medical condition that’s being followed by a doctor, you should definitely check with them,” advised Hansen. “If people are having concerns about abnormal heart rhythms or racing heart, then that’s definitely something that you can bring up and talk with your doctor about.”
In general, the fear we feel while watching a scary movie or visiting a haunted house is different than true fear, because we’re aware that there isn’t a real threat to our safety.
“There are definitely good kinds of stress for the heart,” explained Hansen. “So exercise is one of those things, being active. It puts stress on your heart, but it helps your heart and builds resilience and builds reserve, so that when you need it, it’s there.”
While a good scare can get your blood pumping --
“It’s not the same as going out and doing your workout for the day, so you don’t get to watch a scary movie and skip the gym,” said Hansen.
But if you enjoy the frights of Halloween, have at it.
“We want people to engage in things that they like to do, things that build community,” said Hansen. “Being able to engage in those experiences and having a good time, that’s absolutely good for the whole person.”