Sport and health for women

Veröffentlicht am: October 09, 2024

Physiotherapist

Plenty of exercise reduces the mortality rate among women

The article at a glance

Heart disease and cancer are the two leading causes of death worldwide. Data shows that women who exercise a lot have a lower risk of dying from heart disease, cancer and other causes.
Women with a high level of cardiovascular fitness are also less likely to develop dementia. This could be related to a higher level of a protein that is responsible for improving mitochondrial biogenesis.
Combining intermittent fasting with a ketogenic diet can increase health benefits and improve mitochondrial health. This includes not eating from three hours before bedtime to reduce free radical damage.
Lack of exercise is responsible for almost five million deaths worldwide every year. The more you move and exercise, the lower your risk of premature death due to illness. Try to sit as little as possible during the day.

Heart disease and cancer are the two leading causes of death in the USA. The term heart disease covers a variety of conditions, including cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease and heart attack. Many people think that only men are affected by these diseases. However, the CDC reports that almost as many women die from them each year.

Coronary heart disease is the most common. It affects 6.2 percent of all women aged 20 and over. Many women report that they did not notice any symptoms before they suffered a heart attack. Some, however, suffer from symptoms such as angina pectoris, nausea or fatigue. Diabetes, obesity, an unhealthy diet and lack of exercise are all lifestyle factors that increase your risk of heart disease.

Each of these factors also increases your risk of cancer. Cancers that affect women more often than men include breast, cervical, lung, bowel and skin cancer. Most cancers occur in women after the menopause. However, gynecological cancers can occur at any age.

Every year, 90,000 women are diagnosed with some form of gynecologic cancer and 242,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer. The signs of gynecological cancer can be vague and resemble symptoms of other diseases, such as unexplained weight loss, constant fatigue, loss of appetite or satiety, pelvic pain or changes in bowel habits.

Fitness lowers the risk of premature death in women

New data recently presented by the European Society of Cardiology strongly suggests that women who exercise a lot have a significantly lower risk of dying from heart disease, cancer and other diseases. There are numerous studies with male participants or mixed groups. However, the researchers point out that there is hardly any information specific to women.

The study analyzed data from 4,714 adult women who had undergone echocardiography for known or suspected coronary heart disease. During exercise tests on the treadmill, the intensity was progressively increased to measure the fitness of the women. The scientists defined "fitness" as a maximum load of ten metabolic equivalents (MET).

The data of the women who achieved ten MET or more were then compared with those who achieved lower values. Ten MET corresponds to a rapid ascent of four flights of stairs (floors) without stopping in between or a very rapid ascent of three flights of stairs (floors).

The researchers observed the participants over an average period of 4.6 years. During this time, they recorded 345 deaths from cardiovascular disease, 164 from cancer and 203 from other causes among the test subjects. After adjusting for influencing factors, the results showed that women who achieved a higher MET value had a lower risk of dying from all the diseases studied.

In comparison, the annual mortality rate for women in the lower fitness group was almost four times higher; almost twice as many women died of cancer each year. One of the researchers, Dr. Jesus Peteiro, noted that the average age of the participants was 64, and 80 percent of the women were between the ages of 50 and 75. He also stated:

"Good exercise tolerance reduced the risk of premature death from cardiovascular disease, cancer and other causes. Looking at the results of both studies, it is striking that women whose hearts work normally under stress are unlikely to develop cardiovascular disease.

However, there is always a risk of dying from cancer or other causes if physical performance is lower. Women who have a normal cardiac output during physical activity and good endurance have the lowest risk."

To assess heart function, the women had to undergo a cardiac imaging procedure during the treadmill tests. The women who showed poor heart function in these tests were more likely to succumb to cardiovascular disease during the follow-up period. However, no conclusions could be drawn about the risk of death due to other causes. Peteiro also explained: "The results were the same for women over 60 and under 60, although the group under 50 was rather small."

Cardiovascular fitness reduces the risk of dementia

Staying fit is the key to reducing your personal risk of many chronic diseases, including those that affect the central nervous system. Worldwide, 47 million people are living with dementia. Experts expect this number to rise to 75 million by 2030. By taking simple steps to improve cardiovascular fitness, you may be able to significantly reduce this risk.

A study by the University of Gothenburg in Sweden showed that women with the highest cardiovascular fitness had an 88 percent lower risk of dementia compared to women with moderate fitness. Even maintaining a certain level of fitness proved to be beneficial. Those with the lowest level of fitness had a 41 percent higher risk of dementia than those with an average level of fitness.

The researchers did not look at how often the participants exercised. Instead, they carried out tests using a cycle ergometer. They gradually increased the resistance. Meanwhile, the women were asked to continue cycling until they were exhausted. The authors wrote:

"These results suggest that cardiovascular fitness is related to brain tissue sparing in older people. The results also indicate a strong biological link between aerobic fitness and the maintenance or improvement of central nervous system health and cognitive function in older adults."

Good fitness can also protect neurological health in another way, namely by increasing the amount of PGC-1alpha, which contributes to an improvement in mitochondrial biogenesis. Data show that Alzheimer's patients have less PGC-1alpha in the brain. When the level in the cells is high, they produce fewer toxic amyloid proteins, which are associated with the development of Alzheimer's disease.

Test subjects diagnosed with mild to moderate Alzheimer's were prescribed a four-month exercise program under supervision. The results showed that this group exhibited fewer neuropsychiatric symptoms of the disease than the control group, which did not exercise.

A progressive walking program in people with early Alzheimer's disease led to improvements in cardiovascular fitness and functional abilities. This in turn resulted in improved memory performance and an increase in the size of the hippocampus in the brain.

Mitochondrial function in the context of disease risk reduction

The mitochondria are tiny power plants in the cells that produce a large part of the energy generated by the body and coordinate apoptosis or programmed cell death. This is important to prevent malfunctioning cells that can turn into cancer.

The brain is the organ with the greatest energy requirements and is therefore particularly susceptible to impaired energy production. This process can then make the brain more susceptible to age-related diseases.

With increasing age, the genes that control mitochondrial energy production are switched off. As a result, the density of mitochondria in the cells decreases and they become more fragmented. With insufficient energy production and dysfunctional mitochondria, defective cells can survive and multiply.

Our mitochondria can be damaged in various ways. However, superoxide free radicals are usually the main culprit. Although the production of superoxide is part of a normal process, when this compound is produced at higher than usual levels, it damages the DNA in our mitochondria. This damage increases further with metabolic inflexibility.

This means that you burn a higher percentage of carbohydrates and less fat. When you burn carbohydrates, more electrons escape, which combine with oxygen to form superoxide. Processed foods with a high carbohydrate content prevent efficient fat burning. However, burning fats produces less oxidative stress than burning carbohydrates. You can therefore make a fundamental contribution to protecting your mitochondrial health with your diet.

The right diet in combination with exercise increases the benefits

The right diet together with a sensible cardiovascular workout leads to increased metabolic flexibility and you reap the full health benefits. For many years, the standard recommendation was three full meals a day with small snacks in between.

The greatest risk of this diet is the danger of overeating. Less obvious, however, is the risk of metabolic disorders, which increase the risk of cancer, heart disease and dementia.

This is why we have been recommending for several years that you do not eat anything in the three hours before going to bed. In a study, scientists have found that eating an early dinner or skipping a meal changes the way the body metabolizes fats and carbohydrates. For example, this improves fat burning and reduces feelings of hunger. The key to success in the study was that the last meal was eaten in the afternoon at the latest.

In fact, this was the only change the scientists made: the times at which the participants ate. The total number and type of calories remained the same. As a result, the test subjects reported less hunger. At the same time, fat burning increased in the evening and the participants showed greater metabolic flexibility. Apparently, a late evening meal leads to increased free radical damage, which has a negative impact on mitochondrial function.

Use your biological rhythm to your advantage and optimize your metabolism. Your body needs less energy when you sleep. So if you eat right before bed, your mitochondria produce excessive amounts of free radicals. In a study of 1,800 patients suffering from prostate or breast cancer, researchers found that the timing of meals reduced the risk of cancer.

They also observed that subjects who woke up early in the morning had a higher risk of cancer if they had eaten their last meal late the night before - compared to those who were more energetic in the evening. One very effective option is to combine intermittent fasting, where you get into the habit of going without food for longer periods of time, with a ketogenic diet.

Fasting promotes autophagy and strengthens mitochondrial health, activates stem cells and stimulates mitochondrial biosynthesis. What many people don't realize is that most of these benefits occur during the refeeding phase. For optimal health, it is therefore very important that you think carefully about what you eat.

In one study, participants lost three percent of their body weight. They only limited the period in which they ate, but did not change their diet itself. Although the test subjects lost weight, other important disease parameters did not change, such as visceral fat percentage, diastolic blood pressure and triglyceride, fasting blood glucose and fasting insulin levels.

If intermittent fasting is combined with a ketogenic diet, it offers the same benefits as fasting in principle. In addition, you strengthen your health and benefit from increased muscle mass, improved insulin sensitivity, reduced inflammation, a lower risk of cancer and a longer life.

Lack of exercise can be worse than smoking

Exercise and nutrition are considered two of the best preventive strategies against many common health problems. In a study, scientists concluded that the lack of physical activity cost more than 67.5 billion US dollars worldwide in 2013 and causes more than five million deaths every year. Smoking kills around six million people every year.

Another group of researchers analyzed data from more than 120,000 people and found that cardiovascular fitness has a greater impact on mortality risk than smoking, diabetes or heart disease. Our cardiovascular fitness is undoubtedly important. However, we can't exercise as much as most of us sit during the day.

The average U.S. resident age 18 and older sits nine to twelve hours a day. While sitting is not inherently dangerous, the cumulative effects on your cardiovascular and musculoskeletal systems can seriously affect your health and shorten your life.

In a four-year study of 8,000 Americans aged 45 and over, researchers found that those who exercised more were healthier overall. There was also a correlation between the death rate and the number of hours participants spent sitting each day. For every hour you sit, you should move for at least ten minutes. However, it is better to sit as little as possible in the first place.

Also make sure that you are sitting correctly. This requires greater muscle activation and reduces the potential risk of pain and strain in the lower back.

Sources (in English):

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Heron, M. (2019, November). Deaths: Leading Causes for 2017 National Vital Statistics Reports, 68(6)

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