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If heart disease runs in your loved ones, improving your fitness could also be an important strategy to help prevent it, in response to a study published online April 9, 2018. circulation.
Researchers examined data from nearly 502,000 people, ages 40 to 69, who filled out questionnaires about their current physical activity and family medical history. The researchers also measured participants' each day activity levels, grip strength, and cardiovascular fitness.
After six years, the researchers found a lower incidence of heart attack and stroke amongst those that scored highest in all three categories of physical activity, grip strength and cardio fitness. Notably, the center profit was stronger in those with a family history of heart disease, and the upper their fitness level, the greater the profit.
Among individuals with intermediate genetic risk for heart disease, those with the strongest grip were 36% less more likely to develop heart disease and 46% less more likely to develop atrial fibrillation than those with the weakest grip. For individuals with a powerful genetic risk, high cardiovascular fitness had much more vital advantages. This was related to a 49% lower incidence of heart disease and a 60% lower incidence of atrial fibrillation, in comparison with those with lower cardiovascular fitness.
The takeaway here is that a family history of heart disease doesn't mean you're destined for it. Improving your fitness can assist protect you from the genetic hand you've been dealt.
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