Intense
Exercise Cuts Heart Risk
Study finds jogging, rowing,
lifting weights are best
Want to improve your heart
health? Run if you can, do not walk. Row in the water rather than
wade in it.
No
Pain, No Gain ... And Them Some
A new study adds a new twist
to the "no pain, no gain" theory by finding that increased intensity
of exercise significantly lowers the risk of coronary heart disease
(CHD) in men. The research appeared in a recent issue of the Journal
of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
"We all know that physical
activity is good for heart disease. This is the first time we've
shown that intensity of exercise over and above the amount of energy
expenditure makes a difference," says Dr. Frank Hu, senior author
of the study and an associate professor of nutrition at Harvard
School of Public Health. "If the exercise is suitable for the person,
I think people should aim for more rigorous exercise given the amount
of energy expenditure."
In other words, if you
can burn 100 calories either by walking for an hour or running for
half an hour, go for the run.
Resistance
Training Is Beneficial For Heart Disease
The association between
aerobic activity and reduced risk for CHD was expected. More surprising
were results documenting a similar risk reduction with weight training.
"This is the first study to directly look at the relationship between
weight training and risk of CHD, and this is the first evidence
that resistance training is beneficial for heart disease," Hu says.
The study looked at a
group of 44,452 male dentists, optometrists, pharmacists, podiatrists,
osteopaths, and veterinarians enrolled in the Health Professionals'
Follow-up Study who were interviewed at two-year intervals between
1986 and the beginning of 1998.
Men who ran for an hour
or more each week had a 42 percent reduced risk for CHD compared
with men who did not run. Men who trained with weights for 30 minutes
or more per week had a 23 percent reduced risk of CHD compared with
those who did not. Rowing for one hour or more per week was associated
with an 18 percent reduced risk. A half-hour or more of brisk walking
each day was also associated with an 18 percent reduction in risk
for CHD. The faster you walked, the bigger the reduction.
Moreover, Hu says, "men
who exercised one hour per day had a 30 percent lower risk compared
with those who exercised one hour per week. This is an overall estimate
and does not consider types and intensity of exercise."
The physically active
men in the study also tended to have lower body mass indexes, lower
total fat intake, higher intakes of fiber and alcohol, and lower
incidences of smoking and high blood pressure.
"This certainly demonstrated
the enormous potential for exercise in lowering the risk of heart
disease," Hu says.
Aerobic activity, we know,
has a direct effect on heart muscle, can raise "good" and lower
"bad" cholesterol, and can lower blood pressure. Weight training
does not have a direct effect on the muscles of the heart, but it
can have a beneficial effect on insulin resistance and body fat,
which in turn can have an effect on heart disease.
The value of a study such
as this is how it is used to fight the "epidemic of sloth" in America,
says Dr. Alan Rozanski, director of nuclear cardiology and cardiac
stress testing at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital and a professor
of medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons,
both in New York City. "On a societal level, we have to start a
process where we're getting the message out. The problem today is
intellectually people understand that exercise is useful but, given
our lifestyles and the combination of forces within our society,
we need to translate this into action."
Current exercise recommendations
emphasize moderately intense activities such as walking and do not
highlight weight training. "Our results suggest that resistance
training can be incorporated in combination with aerobic exercise,"
Hu says.
Rozanski thinks things
need to be even simpler than that: "Take the stairs instead of the
elevator and carry the groceries instead of paying someone to do
it. The other way is so convenient. You think, 'I'll save a few
minutes here, a few minutes there,' but you're literally going to
lose, days, months, minutes of your life."
Always consult your physician
for more information.
Online
Resources
(Our Organization is not
responsible for the content of Internet sites.)
American
Heart Association
Journal
of the American Medical Association (JAMA)
National
Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes
of Health (NIH)
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December 2002
No
Pain, No Gain ... And Them Some
Resistance
Training Is Beneficial For Heart Disease
Alarming
News for African-American Men's Heart Health
Online
Resources
In Other Men's Health
News:
Alarming
News for African-American Men's Heart Health
Those with coronary
disease are in worse shape than Caucasian men and less capable of
exercise
African-American men with
coronary heart disease are in worse shape and less capable of exercise
than their Caucasian counterparts.
That is the alarming finding
of a new study presented recently at the American Heart
Association's scientific sessions meeting in Chicago.
Researchers at the Ochsner
Clinic Foundation in New Orleans looked at 5,069 people referred
for stress testing and compared fitness levels of African-American
men and Caucasian men.
Caucasian men had significantly
higher exercise capacity than African-American men, who were
found to be more obese. The researchers say they found that being
African-American was an independent risk factor, although weak,
for poor exercise capacity.
The researchers say in
a prepared statement that an emphasis on weight loss and an increase
in exercise and physical fitness is important for prevention of
cardiovascular disease in African-American men.
Several previous studies
of people with coronary artery disease have found that exercise
capacity is a strong predictor of future health. However, there
are few studies that have assessed exercise capacity in adult African-Americans
or the effect of race on fitness levels, the researchers say.
Always consult your physician
for more information.
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