Physical activity is thought to be our greatest ally in the fight against cardiovascular disease.
But In a new study, researchers suggest that there may be significant variations in its protective effects across a range of different situations, such as regularly playing a sport, carrying heavy loads at work, or going for a walk with friends.
The research was conducted by a team from Université de Paris in collaboration with Australian researchers.
Heart diseases are the leading cause of mortality around the world, and there is no sign that this trend is declining.
However, a large number of premature deaths could be prevented by taking appropriate preventive measures.
Among these measures, physical activity is often presented as having multiple benefits, and international guidelines emphasize the need to be active in order to avoid cardiovascular mortality.
But physical activity is a broad concept, and few scientific studies have looked into the differences between various types of exercise may have.
In the study, the team examined data from participants in the Paris Prospective Study III.
For ten years, this extensive French study has been monitoring the health status of over 10,000 volunteers, aged 50 to 75 years old and recruited during a health check-up at the Paris Health Clinic.
Participants were asked to fill out a questionnaire about the frequency, duration, and intensity of their physical activity in three different contexts: physical activity through sport, physical activity at work (for example carrying heavy loads), and physical activity in their leisure time (such as gardening).
The heart health of participants was then assessed based on the health of their arteries using cutting-edge ultrasound imaging of the carotid artery (a superficial artery in the neck).
This method, known as “echo tracking,” can be used to measure baroreflex sensitivity, a mechanism of automatic adaptation to sudden changes in blood pressure.
When this system is impaired, this can lead to major health problems and a higher risk of cardiac arrest.
They found that high-intensity sporting physical activity is linked to better neural baroreflex.
Conversely, physical activity at work (such as routinely carrying heavy loads) appears to be more strongly linked to an abnormal neural baroreflex and greater arterial stiffness.
Such activity could, therefore, be harmful to heart health, and in particular, may be associated with heart rhythm disorders.
The findings do not suggest that movement at work is harmful to health, instead, they suggest that chronic, strenuous activity (such as lifting heavy loads) at work may be.
The researchers will attempt to replicate these results in other populations and explore in greater detail the interactions between physical activity and health.
The lead author of the study is researcher Jean-Philippe Empana.
The study is published in Hypertension.
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