Exercise training helps control blood pressure
Key points
- Exercise training helps patients with high blood pressure, or "hypertension," control their heart rate and reduce their blood pressure, new research shows.
- Laterza of the Heart Institute, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil and colleagues had 11 hypertensive patients in their mid-40s participate in three hour-long exercise training sessions per week for 4 months.
- The results showed that exercise training seemed to improve the nerve reflexes that help control blood pressure and heart rate.
- The researchers note that weakened nerve reflexes have been shown previously to be a risk factor for sudden death after heart attacks.
Exercise training helps patients with high blood pressure, or "hypertension," control their heart rate and reduce their blood pressure, new research shows.
In the study, Dr. Mateus C. Laterza of the Heart Institute, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil and colleagues had 11 hypertensive patients in their mid-40s participate in three hour-long exercise training sessions per week for 4 months. Another 9 hypertensive patients did not participate in exercise training. A group of 12 individuals with normal blood pressure was also studied.
The results showed that exercise training seemed to improve the nerve reflexes that help control blood pressure and heart rate. This was associated with a drop in blood pressure for the hypertensive patients.
The researchers note that weakened nerve reflexes have been shown previously to be a risk factor for sudden death after heart attacks. "Thus, it is reasonable to expect that the improvement in (nerve activity) plays a protective role in hypertensive patients," they write.
SOURCE: Hypertension, June 2007.
Written and revised by
Andrey Nailor, M.D.
Our doctors write and review articles for accuracy and keep them up to date.
health.am provides general information, not medical advice. Always consult a qualified health professional about your own health.
Explore health topics
More in this topic
Heart & Blood Vessels →
NewsSalt may be culprit for uncontrolled blood pressure
People with high blood pressure that isn't controlled by multiple medications are likely eating too much salt, new findings in the journal Hypertension show. Individuals with so-called resistant hypertension showed…
22 July 2009
NewsConservative Blood Glucose Control May Offer Significantly Improved Outcomes for Vascular Surgery
Conservative Blood Glucose Control May Offer Significantly Improved Outcomes for Vascular Surgery Patients A study published in the May 2009 issue of the journal Anesthesiology has found that a more conservative regimen…
24 April 2009
NewsExercise Training May Provide Some Benefit for Patients With Heart Failure
Aerobic exercise training appears safe for patients with heart failure and was associated with a modest reduction in the risk of death and hospitalization, with some improvement in quality of life, according to two…
