"The groundwork of all happiness is health." - Leigh Hunt

To keep your heart working well, stay energetic as you age

The research we're taking a look at.

Photo: KatarzynaBialasiewicz/iStock

Staying physically energetic can keep your heart in good condition as you progress from middle age into your 70s, latest research suggests.

With age, the guts's essential pumping chamber, the left ventricle, thickens. Both ventricles may additionally stiffen and never fill properly with blood—a condition generally known as diastolic dysfunction. But getting the perfect amount of physical activity (at the least 150 minutes per week of moderate activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity) will help prevent the issue, in response to an August 2016 study. European Heart Journal.

The study involved 4,342 adults aged 45 to 64 when the study began within the late Eighties. The researchers periodically tracked their activity levels through questionnaires over a 24-year period and measured their heart function with special heart ultrasounds near the top of the study. About half of the participants (average age now 76) met criteria for a super amount of leisure-time physical activity, comparable to walking or gardening or yard work, but about 30 percent did no physical activity in any respect. Reported. However, increasing activity levels later in life also offsets age-related changes in heart function, the researchers found.

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