It is no longer recent news – regular physical activity can help us live longer. However, did you know it can also be used to estimate your chances of a heart attack or a stroke? A recent study has discovered precisely that. Scientists found that if a man was capable of doing over 40 push-ups, then they had a 96% reduction in the risk of having a cardiovascular disease for approximately the next ten years, as reported by a team in Harvard University. If a man could do about 21-30 push-ups, then there was nearly a quarter of risk regarding any disease such as heart failure or coronary artery disease when compared to a person who failed to manage about ten push-ups.
That was a startling report that was presented by authors in the JAMA Network Open journal. After a few examinations, they've come up with a baseline of about eleven or more push-ups which can have a significant effect in lowering any cardiovascular disease from taking place. It was found that push-ups could turn out to be a much better indicator of the future health of someone's heart than other tests like running. Plus, it's basically free!
According to the author of the paper, Justin Chang, from the TH Chan School of Public Health in Harvard, that could become a no-cost way to ascertain the cardiovascular health or risk associated with it in any particular setting. It’s almost revolutionary. According to Chang, the results related to cardiovascular diseases were much better than the results obtained from submaximal treadmill tests where subjects had to run and then their breath had to be measured.
The study used about 1000 firefighters from Indiana between 2000-2007. Medical reports concerning their cardiovascular conditions were checked for the next ten years. The men on whom the study was conducted were of an average age of about 39.6 years, varying from 21 to 66 years of age. The average body-mass index or BMI was 28.7, and all of them were quite active. After all adjustments of BMI and ages, that link between long-term health and BMI was found to be strong enough.
However, the heart conditions were quite low, i.e. 37 during the trial period of the study. The low number that was presented in the push-up group resulted in a drop of confidence among the participants. It was doubtful whether doing about 11-20 push-ups can cause a reduction in the risk of heart disease by about 64 percent.
However, scientists remain hopeful. That's just the first study; more studies need to be done. Yet, push-ups seem to be an effective test to identify cardiovascular risks. Other experts have also noted that the studies should be expanded and it should be conducted on other groups too, like women or the less active. After all, it's almost a given that firefighters generally stay at the top of their physical health due to the kind of job they have.
As the associate medical director working at the British Heart Foundation, Professor Jeremy Pearson, reported, the study has shown that fit firefighters would have a lesser risk of actually getting a heart attack or a stroke in the next ten years. Generally, heart attacks or strokes occur when our arteries begin to narrow down due to Atherosclerosis; this is a slow, progressive disease that might begin in childhood. In some people, atherosclerosis progresses rapidly in their 30s, while in others, it does not become dangerous until they reach their 60s. So, it is quite vital for us to exercise and keep ourselves fit to prevent any cardiovascular issue from happening in our future.
This study proves once again how significant exercise and physical activity is for our health. So, perhaps, it is time for us to hit the gym or go for a run – regularly!
Reference: Truth Theory
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