Coronary heart disease attributable to sedentary lifestyle - selected states, 1988

Article Abstract:

Every year in the United States approximately 2.1 million people die from all causes. Disease of the coronary arteries, the vessels that serve the heart, accounts for approximately 27.5 percent of these deaths. Known risk factors for coronary heart disease include sedentary lifestyle, elevated cholesterol level, smoking, hypertension, diabetes and obesity. Information from a telephone survey of individuals older than 18 years of age in 37 states was used to investigate the independent effect of sedentary lifestyle on coronary heart disease. Lifestyle was considered sedentary if it included less than three 20 minute exercise periods per week. Sedentary lifestyle was the largest (58 percent) and most easily changed risk factor for coronary heart disease. The prevalence of other risks was also measured: cigarette smoking (25 percent), obesity (22 percent), hypertension (17), and diabetes (5 percent). These and other data suggest that an individual with a sedentary lifestyle is approximately twice as likely to die of coronary heart disease as are physically active individuals. The prevalence of sedentary life varies regionally, from 45 percent in Washington State to 74 percent in New York. These data strongly suggest that the rate of coronary heart disease could be considerably reduced if the United States population increased its general level of physical activity. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Life style, Lifestyles

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Sexual activity triggering myocardial infarction: one less thing to worry about

Article Abstract:

People with coronary artery disease should not worry that sexual intercourse will precipitate a heart attack, especially if they engage in regular exercise. A 1996 study revealed that less than one percent of the heart attacks studied were caused by sexual intercourse. The risk of heart attack following sex was highest in those who lived relatively sedentary lives. Of the 27 people who had a heart attack following sex, 23 were sedentary. Their risk of sex-induced heart attack was three times higher than those who exercised three or more times a week. Heart attacks can be triggered by changes in blood pressure, constriction of coronary arteries or increased blood coagulation. Another factor is the vulnerability of arterial plaques. Regular exercise lowers heart rate and blood pressure. People with coronary artery disease can reduce their risk of sex-induced heart attacks by exercising regularly and lowering blood levels of fats that can affect plaques.

Editorial, Sexual intercourse

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Clinical and Angiographic Characteristics of Exertion-Related Acute Myocardial Infarction

Article Abstract:

People with risk factors for heart disease who are habitually sedentary should begin exercising gradually to prevent a heart attack. In a study of 1,048 patients who had a heart attack, 64 had the heart attack while they were exercising. These 64 patients were more likely to have risk factors for heart disease such as elevated blood cholesterol levels, smoking, and pre-existing coronary artery disease and were more likely to have been chronically inactive before they began exercising.

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