Researchers report that any activity is more beneficial for heart health than sitting, including sleeping.
Experts say daily activity can improve blood pressure, blood sugar and muscle strength.
They say that even taking 5-minute walking breaks during the workday can be beneficial.
Baseball great Satchel Paige said, “Don’t look back. Something might win you over.
In other words: keep moving forward.
That’s the theme of a new study that finds any activity, even sleeping, is better for the heart than sitting.
Supported by the British Heart Foundation and published today in the European Journal of the HeartThe study authors say their research is the first to evaluate how different movement patterns throughout a 24-hour day are linked to heart health.
The researchers say this is the first evidence to come from the international ProPASS (Prospective Physical Activity, Sitting and Sleep) consortium.
Cardiovascular disease – all diseases of the heart and circulation – is the leading cause of death worldwide, researchers point out. In 2021, it was responsible for one in three deaths (18 million) worldwide, with coronary heart disease being the leading cause of death.
How the Exercise and Heart Health Study Was Conducted
In their study, scientists from University College London analyzed data from six studies, involving 15,246 people from five countries, to see how movement throughout the day is associated with heart health.
Each participant wore a device on their thigh measuring their activity throughout the 24-hour day and their heart health was measured.
Heart health was measured using six criteria: body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, HDL cholesterol, HDL/total cholesterol ratio, triglycerides and HbA1c.
The study identified the behaviors that make up a typical 24-hour day, with time spent in moderate to vigorous activity being the most beneficial for heart health, followed by light activity, standing and sleeping. All were compared to the harmful effects of sedentary behavior.
The team modeled what would happen if an individual changed varying amounts of one behavior with another every day for a week to estimate the effect on heart health for each scenario. They reported that when replacing sedentary behavior, just 5 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity had a noticeable effect on heart health.
How activity contributes to cardiovascular health
The researchers reported that for a 54-year-old woman with an average body mass index of 26.5, a change in 30 minutes translated into a 0.64 decrease in BMI, a difference of 2.4%. .
Replacing 30 minutes of daily sitting or lying time with moderate or vigorous exercise could also result in a 2.5 cm (2.7%) decrease in waist circumference or a 1.33 mmol/mol decrease (3. 6%) of glycated hemoglobin.
“The main takeaway from our research is that while small changes in how you move can have a positive effect on heart health, the intensity of movement matters,” Jo Blodgett, PhD, lead author of the study and researcher at UCL Surgery & Interventional Science. and the Institute of Sport, Exercise and Health, said in a statement.
Blodgett added that the most beneficial change the team observed was replacing sitting with moderate to vigorous activity, which could be running, brisk walking or climbing stairs.
“Basically, any activity that increases your heart rate and makes you breathe faster, even for a minute or two,” she said.
Although the authors say the results cannot infer a causal link between movement behaviors and cardiovascular outcomes, this research contributes to a growing body of evidence linking 24-hour moderate to vigorous physical activity to better health outcomes. of body fat.
They also said longer-term studies would be crucial to better understand the associations between movement and cardiovascular outcomes.
How to increase your daily activities
Researchers said that while time spent doing vigorous activity is the quickest way to improve heart health, there are ways people of all abilities can benefit. It’s just that the lower the intensity of the activity, the longer it takes to start receiving a tangible benefit.
They said that using a standing desk for a few hours a day instead of a sitting desk, for example, is a change over a relatively long period of time, but one that could also be incorporated into a work routine quite easily. work.
It was also found that the least active subjects derived the greatest benefit from more active activity.
“A key novelty of the ProPASS consortium is the use of wearable devices that better differentiate between types of physical activity and posture, allowing us to estimate the health effects of even subtle variations with greater precision,” Emmanuel Stamatakis, PhD, co-senior author. of the study and professor at the Charles Perkins Center and Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of Sydney, said in a statement.
Dr. Cheng-Han Chen, interventional cardiologist and medical director of the structural heart program at MemorialCare Saddleback Medical Center in California, said: Medical news today there are many simple ways to add more steps to your day.
“Take scheduled breaks throughout the day to take a short five-minute walk, whether around the house or in the office; take the stairs instead of the elevator, park further from the store and walk, and walk faster to do your shopping,” he advised.
Chen said using the stairs has multiple positive effects.
“Climbing stairs is a more difficult exercise than walking on level ground. That’s because you’re not only moving your body, but you’re moving it against gravity, and you’re essentially pushing yourself up and out,” he said. “You also build muscles in your lower body, strengthening your core and lower back. »
“Climbing stairs is harder, you get more exercise, and more exercise is better for you and your heart. We think that walking up the stairs actually gives you three times more exercise than the same amount of time walking on the ground,” Chen noted.
Activity helps with blood pressure and blood sugar
Dr. Yu-Ming Ni, cardiologist and lipidologist at MemorialCare Heart and Vascular Institute at Orange Coast Medical Center in California, said: Medical news today that more activity leads to better blood pressure control. This, in turn, puts less strain on the heart over time and can prevent the development of heart failure or a heart attack.
“Muscles are also a major consumer of blood sugar and physical activity improves blood sugar levels and can reduce the risk of diabetes,” Ni said. “Because diabetes is a major risk factor for heart attacks and strokes, any efforts to prevent diabetes will ultimately result in a decreased risk of heart disease. »
Ni noted that the study shows that even small improvements in physical activity can have an impact on blood sugar and blood pressure.
“Remember, small changes made over the years can have a lasting impact on health,” Ni said. “It may not seem like much to walk 5 minutes every office hour, but it can add up over the course of the workday. In an 8-hour workday, this equates to 40 minutes of physical activity. Add in 15 minutes of walking during your lunch break and you suddenly have almost an hour of extra physical activity each workday.
Research matters to the United States
Dr. J. Wes Ulm, a medical researcher and bioinformatics expert who works as an analyst for the National Institutes of Health, said: Medical news today the research “at first glance does not seem to indicate much in terms of groundbreaking recommendations,” it is significant. Especially for people in the United States.
“The United States, unfortunately, has borne the brunt of a slow-burn health crisis, particularly over the past decade, with a steady downward trend in life expectancy that has markedly accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic but, unlike most other countries in the world. – failed to recover,” he said.
Ulm said the United States now has one of the lowest life expectancies of any developed country, as well as worse outcome measures for a variety of other basic public health metrics.
He added that more movement helps, especially with chronic illness.
“The prevalence and severity of these chronic diseases, in turn, are profoundly exacerbated by physical inactivity, obesity, and poor diet, the former of which (and implicitly the latter) is specifically addressed by the research reported in this study,” Ulm said.
How technology can help in daily activities
Dr. Bradley Serwer is a cardiologist and chief medical officer at VitalSolution, a company that provides cardiovascular and anesthesiology services to hospitals nationwide.
Server a dit Medical news today that the study results reaffirm why we are seeing so much technological advancement in motion tracking.
“We have seen many updates and advancements over the years. Smartwatches that track movement, steps, flights of stairs, heart rate, heart rate variability, etc. are a valuable tool. Not only do they track your stats, but they can also serve as a reminder when you stay sedentary for too long,” he said.
Serwer added that standing desks have become popular for promoting constant movement.
“Exercise throughout the workday can help reduce burnout, improve mood and improve mental clarity,” he said. “My tips for long-term success include finding a physical activity that you enjoy and stick with. Find an exercise partner to motivate you. Record your workout on a smartwatch or in an old-fashioned written journal. These tips will motivate and encourage you to continue making permanent lifestyle changes.
2023-11-11 00:56:38
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