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It’s Never Too Late to Get Moving
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By Phyllis McIntosh
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MediZine's Healthy Living Third Quarter 2006
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Even former couch potatoes who start exercising after age 40 can significantly cut their risk of heart disease, German scientists have found.
The researchers analyzed data on 312 heart disease patients and 479 healthy controls between ages 40 and 68 and quizzed the participants about their levels of activity since age 20. Not surprisingly, they found that people who were active throughout adulthood had a 62 percent lower risk of heart disease than those who rarely exercised. But those who did not start exercising until after age 40 reaped similar benefits, cutting their risk of heart disease by 55 percent. People who became most active enjoyed the greatest advantage.
The study, published in the journal Heart, suggests that physical activity later in life is especially important. Those who maintained an active lifestyle between ages 20 and 39 but became sedentary after age 40 experienced only a 35 percent reduction in risk of heart disease over people who were lifelong couch potatoes.
The results confirm the heart benefits of exercise, the researchers say, and suggest that “changing from a sedentary to a more physically active lifestyle even in later adulthood may strongly decrease coronary heart disease risk.”
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