Is Exercise Safe? AHA Advises to be Safe While Being Active As Sudden Cardiac Death May Happen During A Session

Heart health and exercise have become the town's recent talk after a fictional death was featured in the latest "Sex and the City" revival. The episode showed that the character of Mr. Big, played by 67-year-old actor Chris Noth had an apparent heart attack after a session on his exercise bike and later expired on the bathroom floor.

Although it was only a fictional death, many people questioned how safe exercise is. Dr. Elizabeth Dineen, an associate professor of cardiology at the University of California Irvine, said it might give people a reason to continue having a sedentary lifestyle. But she noted that people should not worry as exercise is safe.

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Is Exercise Safe? AHA Advises being Safe While Being Active As Sudden Cardiac Death May Happen During A Session (Image: ZOE-Animation-Studio)

Risk of Fatal Heart Event During Exercise is Low

Dr. Dineen said that the risk of having a fatal heart event while exercising is low. It is especially lower for people who regularly exercise than those with a sedentary lifestyle.

A 2020 study by an expert from the American Heart Association (AHA), titled "Exercise-Related Acute Cardiovascular Events and Potential Deleterious Adaptations Following Long-Term Exercise Training: Placing the Risks Into Perspective-An Update: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association" published in Circulation, has outlined the benefits of exercise and pointed out that atherosclerosis is the most common cause of sudden cardiac death among middle-aged and older adults.

AHA said that the risk of cardiac death during exercise only happens between 0.31 and 2.1 times per 100,000 people annually. Men who do not usually exercise or engage in physical activity are most at risk, while women and regular exercisers have lower risks.

Moreover, AHA pointed out that active people aged 50 and up have higher life expectancy compared to those with a sedentary lifestyle. Those who exercise one to two times a week has a lower risk, and those who exercise five or more times a week have relatively reduced their risk of having the disease.

Exercise is part of a cardiac rehabilitation program for people who have heart attacks, valve surgery, bypass surgery, and other heart disorders. They are advised to start at a low intensity for a couple of days a week and work their way up. Dr. Dineen cautioned that people should not attempt to go suddenly from being a couch potato to 5K.

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How to Exercise Safely

Patients should ask their doctors before beginning a physical activity program to help them find a suitable one for their needs and physical conditions. They may also refer to a cardiac rehabilitation program to learn how to be active safely.

AHA experts said in a separate article that people should warm up before exercising and cool down after a workout. It will allow for a gradual increase and decrease of heart rate and breathing to help the body improve flexibility.

Moreover, experts recommend monitoring the intensity of physical activity that may range from fairly light intensity to hard intensity. In exercising, the rule of the thumb is to work out hard enough to breathe harder but only to a level that they can still carry a conversation. However, if one can still sing, then they might not be working hard enough.

Lastly, experts in AHA remind the public to watch for warning signs that they are working too hard. These signs include lightheadedness, dizziness, confusion, extreme tiredness after exercise, unusual shortness of breath, uneven heartbeat, and angina or squeezing, burning, and tightness sensation.