A study of healthy senior men
has found that "relatively intensive" endurance exercise confers
benefits on the heart irrespective of the age at which they began training.(1)
The benefits were evident and comparable in those who had started training
before the age of 30 or after the age of 40. As a result, said the
investigators, 40 is not too old to start endurance training.
The
study, which was performed in France, was reported at the EuroPRevent congress
2014 in Amsterdam.
The
study was performed in 40 healthy men (without cardiovascular risk factors)
aged between 55 and 70 years who were divided for assessment according to the
level of exercise they took and the ages at which they began. Thus, 10 of the
men had never exercised for more than 2 hours a week throughout their lives,
and 30 had exercised for at least 7 hours a week for over five years, either
beginning their programmes before the age of 30 (T30, n=16) or after the age of
40 (T40, n=14).
The
regular exercise they took was either running or cycling. Those beginning
before the age of 30 had been training for an average of 39 years (since the
age of 22) and those starting at 40 for 18 years (since the age of 48). Each of
the men was assessed by maximal exercise testing, echocardiography at rest and
during submaximal exercise, and heart rate analysis.
First,
resting heart rate was found to be similar between the two exercise groups (T30
56.8 bpm, T40 58.1 bpm), but significantly faster in the non-exercising men
(69.7 bpm).
Maximal
oxygen uptake was also similar between the T30 (47.3 ml/min/kg) and T40 groups
(44.6 ml/min/kg), but significantly lower in the non-exercising men (33.0
ml/min/kg). "We think this result is of interest," said Matelot,
"because it is related to cardiovascular health and well-being."
Echocardiography
showed that the left ventricle and both atria were bigger in the T30 and T40
men than in the non-trainers, who also exhibited significantly thicker vessel
walls than trainers. "Thus," said Matelot, "cardiac remodelling
seems to be different between both of the trained groups and the non-trained
subjects." Diastolic function (the ability of the left ventricle to fill
with blood when the heart is relaxed) and other measures of heart rate were
also better in the T30 and T40 subjects.
The
study also found no difference between T30 and T40 in cardiac echocardiography
tests. "Thus," said Matelot, "despite biological changes with
age, the heart still seems - even at the age of 40 - amenable to modification
by endurance training. Starting at the age of 40 does not seem to impair the
cardiac benefits.
"However,
endurance training is also beneficial for bone density, for muscle mass, for
oxidative stress. And these benefits are known to be greater if training was
started early in life."
Matelot
pointed out that ageing is associated with adverse structural and functional
changes to the cardiovascular system. And, while physical activity is unable to
prevent these changes, it is able to slow them down. However, it remains
unknown whether endurance training started later in life can reverse the
effects of earlier sedentary behaviour on the heart.
"But
it's never too late to change your way of life and get more physically
active," said Matelot. "This will always be beneficial for the heart
and well-being. And there's no need for a high level of training for many hours
a week. Using the stairs rather than the elevator, or gardening regularly, can
also be beneficial."
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