- Running marathons can lead to serious cardiac problems later in life
- People who are super-fit are more likely to need pacemakers in old age
- This is because exercise causes changes in the body that can disrupt electrical pulses in the heart causing abnormal heart rhythms
11:28 EST, 13 May 2014
|
11:28 EST, 13 May 2014
Running marathons can cause serious heart problems later in life
Running marathons and other gruelling races is bad for the heart and could lead to serious cardiac problems in later life.
Those who enjoy a lean look from taking part in marathons, triathlons and iron man challenges are more likely to need pacemakers in old age, a new study says.
Tests on mice, funded by the British Heart Foundation, show microscopic changes take place in the body due to exercise training.
This can disrupt the electrical pulse of the heart, causing the super-fit to suffer abnormal heart rhythms.
The number of people taking part in marathons is going up every year.
Elderly athletes with a lifelong history of endurance training and competing are prone to heart rhythm disturbances, known as arrhythmias.Â
This is due to molecular changes in the heart’s pacemaker from the exercise training, according to scientists from the University of Manchester.
Normal adults have a resting heart beat of between 60 and 100 per minute.
But the hearts of athletes beat as slow as 30 times a minute – or even lower at night when there can be long pauses between beats.
Cyclists Sir Chris Hoy and Miguel Indurain have resting heart rates of 30 and 28 beats per minute, the scientists say.
Author Dr Alicia D’Souza said: ‘The heart rate is set by the heart’s pacemaker, but this is controlled by the nervous system.
‘The “vagal†nerves lower the heart rate and therefore it was assumed the low heart rate of athletes is the result of over activity of the vagal nerves.Â
‘But our research shows this is not the case. Actually, the heart’s pacemaker changes in response to training and in particular there is a decrease in an important pacemaker protein, known as HCN4, and this is responsible for the low heart rate.’
The researchers say these molecular changes in the cardiac structure which govern heart rhythm may help us to understand the more frequent occurrence of heart rhythm disturbances or even loss of consciousness in athletes.Â
Professor Mark Boyett, lead researcher on the study, added: ‘This is important because although normally a low resting heart rate of an athlete does not cause problems, elderly athletes with a lifelong training history are more likely to need an artificial electronic pacemaker fitted.’
People who are super-fit when they are young are more likely to need pacemakers when they are old
More than 500 marathons take place in Europe and America each year with around one million taking part. The number is forecast to rise by five per cent each year.Â
But Professor Boyett stressed that although endurance exercise training can have harmful effects on the heart, ‘it is more than outweighed by the beneficial effects’.
Professor Jeremy Pearson, Associate Medical Director at the British Heart Foundation, said: ‘This study shows the heart’s electrical wiring changes in mice that exercise for long periods, and these changes in heart rhythm are sustained afterwards.Â
‘If the findings are reproduced in humans they could have implications for heart health in older athletes.Â
‘But much more research is needed before we could draw that conclusion.’
The research is published in the journal Nature Communications.
or comment on this article
-
Billionaire brawl: Packer and Gyngell’s Bondi street fight
-
The moment home explodes LIVE on Television
-
Girl clobbers her rival in the head with SHOVEL
-
Caught on camera: ‘Ghost’ filmed at restaurant
-
The Ice Cream truck song – one of the most racist songs in…
-
Man rips out diver’s air supply in terrifying scuba attack
-
Video claims to show UFO ‘attacking Taliban base’
-
Open mic gaffe as man calls woman a ‘chubby wubby’
-
GRAPHIC CONTENT Mentally ill man shot dead by police
-
Fishermen turn midwives for giant HAMMERHEAD shark
-
Baby born with rare disorder causing two faces
-
AUDIO: Sterling claims V Stiviano is the racist, not him
-
Pictured: Extraordinary street brawl in broad daylight…
-
Exclusive: Garth Brooks is pulling up stakes and selling…
-
Rare gray wolf appears for first time in 83 years – only to…
-
Revealed: The true face of the Zodiac Killer – adopted man…
-
EXCLUSIVE – Taped rants reveal the REAL Donald Sterling:…
-
Tale of two countries: Amazing photographs which show the…
-
It’s a Windsor Wonderland: Prince William throws open the…
-
Oscar-winning ‘Searching for Sugar Man’ director dies at 36
-
Silicon Valley billionaire at war with surfers after he…
-
Woman, 24, faces WIRETAPPING charge after recording her own…
-
How the tune played by ice cream trucks is one of the most…
-
Bizarre scuba altercation of the coast of Hawaii has diver…
Comments (65)
what you think
-
Newest -
Oldest -
Best rated -
Worst rated
The comments below have not been moderated.
BoB,
London, United Kingdom,
moments ago
Shouldn’t have run this article. yes doing crazy endurance training and competing is dangerous but idiots will look at this and use it as justification for doing no exercise whatsoever….
Dibble,
Newcastle upon Tyne,
28 minutes ago
Strenuous exercise is dangerous for those over forty. Moderation is the key.
Scott,
San Juan Capistrano,
2 hours ago
Wow. Glad a I never did that. Turns out its healthier to cheer them on from the cafe along the route. Cheers!
The Bruce,
Tucson, United States,
3 hours ago
I’m pretty sure being a 300 pound welfare queen, stuffing your face full of bear-claws and Big Macs two at a time is a far more dangerous lifestyle than a marathon runner.
Joesph S,
Los Angeles,
4 hours ago
The negative effects take place when you run for more than 20 miles per week. I jog 2.5 miles, 5 days per week….and its a SLOW jog. Perfect blood pressure and heart rate.
gotham83,
michigan, United States,
4 hours ago
When people were slaves the masters would work them to death, thought it was good for the slaves to work so much, kept them from getting into trouble and kept them slim and fit looking. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
Cy Chyc,
Columbia, United States,
4 hours ago
This study was done on mice, not humans. Therefore, this whole article is bogus! Keep running folks!
p51d007,
Springfield,
3 hours ago
Cy Chyc,
Columbia, United States,
4 hours ago
All these studies were done on mice, not humans, therefore this article is bogus! Keep running folks!
gotham83,
michigan, United States,
4 hours ago
Don’t matter, socialized medicine does not want to care for old people anyways. Better people work themselves to death and then die off.
Centurian,
San Antonio, United States,
4 hours ago
0.0 And it’s bad on the knee and ankle joints also
The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.
Find out now