When exercising for your heart, you don’t want to reach your peak too early in life. According to research, to protect yourself To combat high blood pressure in the twilight years, you should maintain your physical activity level into middle age.
But social factors can make this more difficult for some people than others, according to a study of more than 5,000 people in four U.S. cities.
“Teenagers and young people in their early 20s may be more physically active, but their patterns change with age,” said Kirsten Bibbins Domingo, an epidemiologist at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). explained The research was published in April 2021.
Related: This simple daily habit may lower blood pressure
Although many studies have shown that exercise lowers blood pressure, a 2021 study suggests that “maintaining physical activity at a higher level than previously recommended during early life may be especially important,” Bivins-Domingo said. said.
High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is a serious condition that affects billions of people worldwide. It can cause heart attack or stroke. it is also a risk factor Dementia develops later in life.
Related: New blood pressure guidelines mean you too could get high blood pressure
More than 1 in 4 men and about 1 in 5 women suffer from high blood pressure. According to the World Health Organization. However, most people with high blood pressure are not aware that they have high blood pressure. That’s why high blood pressure is often called a “silent killer.”
However, there are ways to improve high blood pressure. This study focuses on exercise.
The study involved more than 5,100 adults and tracked their health over 30 years through physical assessments and questionnaires about exercise habits, smoking status, and alcohol intake.
At each clinical assessment, blood pressure was measured three times at 1-minute intervals, and participants were divided into four categories by race and gender for data analysis.
Overall physical activity levels decreased from ages 18 to 40 for men, women, and both racial groups, and hypertension rates increased and physical activity decreased over the following decades.
According to the researchers, this suggests that: Adolescence is an important window for intervention Prevent midlife hypertension with a health promotion program designed to promote physical activity.
Related: Even just 5 minutes of training every day can make a huge difference to your health.
“Almost half of the participants had suboptimal physical activity levels in young adulthood, which was significantly associated with the development of hypertension, indicating the need to raise minimum standards for physical activity.” said Lead author Jason Nagata is a young adult health specialist at the University of California, San Francisco.
Researchers looked at people who did five hours of moderate exercise per week during early adulthood (twice the minimum amount currently recommended for adults) and found that this level of activity significantly lowered the risk of high blood pressure, especially if the exercise habits were maintained until age 60.
“Achieve at least twice the current minimum adult level.” [physical activity] “These guidelines may be more beneficial in preventing hypertension than simply meeting minimal guidelines,” the researchers said. write In their paper.
But with life-changing decisions being made and responsibilities increasing, it’s not easy to increase your physical activity each week.
“This may be especially true after high school, when opportunities for physical activity decrease and leisure time erodes as young people transition to college, the workforce, and parenthood.” said Mr. Nagata.
Related: Not all sitting positions are the same. One type was associated with improved brain health.
In another sobering truth, the study also showed that black men and women have markedly different health trajectories compared to white women. At age 40, physical activity levels for white men and women plateaued, but activity levels continued to decline for black participants.
By age 45, black women’s hypertension rates exceeded white men’s, but white women in the study experienced the lowest rates of hypertension throughout middle age.
By age 60, 80% to 90% of black men and women had high blood pressure, compared with just under 70% of white men and about half of white women.
The research team attributed these well-known racial disparities to a number of social and economic factors. However, although high school education was noted, these factors were not assessed in this study.
“While black male youth may be enthusiastic about sports, socio-economic factors, neighborhood environment, work and family responsibilities, etc. may prevent them from continuing to be physically active into adulthood,” Nagata said. said.
This study American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
A previous version of this article was published in April 2021.
