Inactive women in their 30s are
almost 50 per cent more likely to develop heart disease in their lifetime than
those who are fit
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The scientists looked at the records of 32,541 women aged 22 to 90, including details about lifestyle and whether they had heart disease.
Armed with this data, they used a mathematical formula to work out their risk of heart disease during their lifetime based on whether they were inactive, were smokers, had high blood pressure or were obese.
A lack of exercise was found to pose the greatest risk to women across all age groups.
By comparison, the risk was 40 per cent for women smokers in their 30s and 30 per cent for the obese. Although obesity and being unfit are closely linked, the researchers from the University of Queensland pointed out that many slim women are inactive.
The latest UK figures show a quarter of women are classified as inactive, while just over half do the recommended two and a half hours of physical activity a week.
Heart disease, which includes heart attacks and strokes, is by far the biggest killer in Britain, claiming 82,000 lives a year.
Experts have previously claimed that
exercising can halve the risk of getting the condition because it lowers the
blood pressure, reduces cholesterol which blocks arteries, and improves
circulation.
Lead researcher Professor Wendy
Brown described inactivity as the ‘Cinderella risk factor’ for
heart disease.
‘Our data suggests that national
programmes for the promotion and maintenance of physical activity across the
adult lifespan, but especially in young adulthood, deserve to be a much higher
public health priority for women than they are now.’
The study, published in the British
Journal of Sports Medicine, concluded: ‘Continuing efforts to reduce smoking
rates in young adult women are warranted.
‘However, from about age 30, the
population attributable risk for inactivity outweighs that of the other leading
risk factors, including high BMI, which is currently receiving much more
attention.’
Thembi Nkala, senior cardiac nurse
at the British Heart Foundation, said: ‘We already know physical inactivity is
a major risk factor for heart disease.
Interestingly, this study shows its
dominant influence on heart disease amongst women, and suggests a greater need
to promote regular physical activity.’
She added: ‘It is important to
remember that heart disease is linked to other factors such as smoking,
obesity, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.’
FIVE-MINUTE
WORKOUT HELPS DIABETICS MANAGE THEIR CONDITION
A five-minute workout before
breakfast and dinner could help diabetics manage their condition more effectively.
Researchers found bursts of intense
exercise before meals – particularly in the morning and evening – control blood
sugar better than one 30-minute session.
Monique Francois, one of the
researchers at the University of Otago in New Zealand, explained: ‘Reducing
post-meal spikes is important for reducing the risk of developing type-2
diabetes and its associated complications.
‘Brief, intense interval exercise
bouts undertaken immediately before meals had a greater impact on post-meal and
subsequent 24-hour glucose concentrations than a single bout of moderate
exercise undertaken before an evening meal
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