Lack of Exercise and Inactivity 'killing as many as Smoking'

A lack of exercise is now causing as many deaths as smoking across the world, a study suggests.

The report, published in the Lancet to coincide with the build-up to the Olympics, estimates that about a third of adults are not doing enough physical activity, causing 5.3m deaths a year.

That equates to about one in 10 deaths from diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and breast and colon cancer.

Researchers said the problem was now so bad it should be treated as a pandemic.

And they said tackling it required a new way of thinking, suggesting the public needed to be warned about the dangers of inactivity rather than just reminded of the benefits of being active.

The team of 33 researchers drawn from centres across the world also said governments needed to look at ways to make physical activity more convenient, affordable and safer.

It is recommended that adults do 150 minutes of moderate exercise, such as brisk walking, cycling or gardening, each week.

The Lancet study found people in higher income countries were the least active with those in the UK among the worst, as nearly two-thirds of adults were judged not to be doing enough.

The researchers admitted comparisons between countries were difficult because the way activity was estimated may have differed from place to place.

Nonetheless, they said they remained confident that their overall conclusion was valid.

Pedro Hallal, one of the lead researchers, said: "With the upcoming 2012 Olympic Games, sport and physical activity will attract tremendous worldwide attention.

"Although the world will be watching elite athletes from many countries compete in sporting events... most spectators will be quite inactive.

"The global challenge is clear - make physical activity a public health priority throughout the world to improve health and reduce the burden of disease."

Prof Lindsey Davies, president of the UK Faculty of Public Health, agreed.

"We need to do all we can to make it easy for people to look after their health and get active as part of their daily lives," she said.

"Our environment has a significant part to play. For example, people who feel unsafe in their local park will be less likely to use it."

But others questioned equating smoking with inactivity.

While smoking and inactivity kill a similar number of people, smoking rates are much lower than the number of inactive people, making smoking more risky to the individual.

Dr Claire Knight, of Cancer Research UK, said: "When it comes to preventing cancer, stopping smoking is by far the most important thing you can do."

Source:
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-politics-18876880


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Too Much Sleeping and Sitting Increases Chances Of Early Death

Sleeping more than nine hours a night, and sitting too much during the day could be a hazardous combination, particularly when added to a lack of exercise, according to new research from the University of Sydney’s 45 and Up Study.

The findings, published today in the journal PLOS Medicine, show that a person who sleeps too much, sits too much and isn’t physically active enough is more than four times as likely to die early as a person without those unhealthy lifestyle habits. (Too much sitting equates to more than 7 hours a day and too little exercise is defined as less than 150 minutes a week.)

“Evidence has increased in recent years to show that too much sitting is bad for you and there is growing understanding about the impact of sleep on our health but this is the first study to look at how those things might act together,” said lead author Dr Melody Ding.

“When you add a lack of exercise into the mix, you get a type of ‘triple whammy’ effect. Our study shows that we should really be taking these behaviours together as seriously as we do other risk factors such as levels of drinking and unhealthy eating patterns. ”

Dr Ding and her colleagues from the University of Sydney analysed the health behaviours of more than 230,000 of the participants in the 45 and Up Study – Australia’s largest study – which is looking at the health of our population as we age.

They looked at lifestyle behaviours that are already known to increase the risk of death and disease – smoking, high alcohol intake, poor diet and being physically inactive – and added excess sitting time and too little/too much sleep into the equation. They then looked at different combinations of all of these risk factors to see which groupings had the most impact on a person’s risk of dying prematurely from any cause.

As well as new evidence on the risky combination of prolonged sleep, sitting and lack of exercise, the researchers also found another problematic triple threat: smoking, high alcohol intake and lack of sleep (less than 7 hours a night) is also linked to a more than four-times greater risk of early death

And several other combinations led to more than double the risk of early death:
Being physically inactive + too much sleep
Being physically inactive + too much sitting
Smoking + high alcohol intake

“The take-home message from this research – for doctors, health planners and researchers – is that if we want to design public health programs that will reduce the massive burden and cost of lifestyle-related disease we should focus on how these risk factors work together rather than in isolation,” said study co-author Professor Adrian Bauman.

“These non-communicable diseases (such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer) now kill more than 38 million people around the world – and cause more deaths than infectious disease. Better understanding what combination of risk behaviours poses the biggest threat will guide us on where to best target scarce resources to address this major – and growing – international problem.”

About the 45 and Up Study

The 45 and Up Study is the largest ongoing study of healthy ageing in the Southern Hemisphere involving a quarter of a million people – one in every 10 men and women aged 45 and over in NSW.

Over time, we are asking all participants ongoing questions about their health, lifestyle, and the medications they use. It is providing the first large-scale, comprehensive measure of health as people move from mid to later life and allowing governments and health policy makers to better plan health services and programs for our ageing population.

It is an accessible resource that researchers and policy-makers can apply to use. More than 580 researchers have used the Study in their work, and numerous policy agencies are also using it directly to help them address important questions about designing and delivering health services.

Source:
https://sydney.edu.au/news-opinion/news/2015/12/09/long-nights-and-lazy-days-could-send-you-to-an-early-grave--45-a.html


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FIVE FACTS ABOUT THE HUMAN HEART EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW

You can feel your heart thudding away every time you put your hand to your chest, but do you have any idea what’s really going on in there or what keeps your heart ticking as it should? Here are five facts about the human heart everyone should know.


1. How the human heart functions

Every day, your heart beats about 100,000 times, sending 2,000 gallons of blood surging through your body. Although it’s no bigger than your fist, your heart has the mighty job of keeping blood flowing through the 60,000 miles of blood vessels that feed your organs and tissues. Any damage to the heart or its valves can reduce that pumping power, forcing the heart to work harder just to keep up with the body’s demand for blood.

So how do you make sure your heart is in tip-top shape? "Keeping your body in good health helps keep the heart a more efficient organ". In other words, eat healthy, well-balanced meals and don’t skimp on the exercise.

2. Male heart attack symptoms, female heart attack symptoms

When it comes to matters of the heart, men and women definitely aren’t created equal. For instance, a man’s heart weighs about 10 ounces, while a woman’s heart weighs approximately 8 ounces.

Not only is a woman’s heart smaller than a man’s, but the signs that it’s in trouble are a lot less obvious. When women have a heart attack -- and more than a half million do each year -- they’re more likely to have nausea, indigestion, and shoulder aches rather than the hallmark chest pain.

Heart disease is the biggest killer of both men and women. And both genders should heed this healthy advice: Don’t smoke, keep your blood pressure and cholesterol levels in check, and watch for the obvious and the more subtle warning signs your heart could be in trouble.

3. Laughter: The good heart medicine

Health experts now have proof that laughter is good medicine. A good belly laugh can send 20% more blood flowing through your entire body. One study found that when people watched a funny movie, their blood flow increased. That’s why laughter might just be the perfect antidote to stress.

When you laugh, the lining of your blood vessel walls relaxes and expands.

4. Stress and the Monday morning heart attack

You’re more likely to have a heart attack on Monday morning than at any other time of the week.

Doctors have long known that morning is prime time for heart attacks. "We call it 'the witching hour,'" Krasuski says. That's because levels of a stress hormone called cortisol peak early in the day. When this happens, cholesterol plaque that has built up in the arteries can rupture and block the flow of blood to the heart. Add in the rise in blood pressure and increased heart rate from the stress of returning to work after the weekend, and you have the perfect recipe for a Monday morning heart attack.

That’s why it’s important to reduce your stress levels as much as you can. Practice meditation, exercise, laugh (see tip No. 3), or spend more quality time with your family -- whatever works best for you.

5. How sex helps the heart

Having an active sex life could cut a man’s risk of dying from heart disease in half. For married men, having an orgasm three or four times a week might offer potent protection against a heart attack or stroke, according to one British study.

Whether sex works as well for women’s hearts is unclear, but a healthy love life seems to equate to good overall health. For one thing, sexual activity is an excellent stress buster. It’s also great exercise -- burning about 85 calories per half-hour session.

If you find it difficult to have sex, that could be a big red flag that something is wrong with your heart. For example, some researchers think erectile dysfunction might warn of a heart attack up to five years in advance.

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Source: Webmd