A person’s inability to exercise can impact how well they function in their golden years.
A new study reveals that abnormalities in how the heart pumps blood may be one cause of a body’s slowdown. Researchers at the Mayo Clinic explored how different features of heart function may impact a person’s ability to exercise, in hopes of identifying potentially reversible problems. They focused on the point of the heartbeat where the heart relaxes.
Dr. Pellikka says, ‘Abnormalities in the relaxation function of the heart, or diastolic function, became more pronounced with aging. And these, the impact of these on the exercise capacity was more pronounced with aging.’ The condition is sometimes caused by high blood pressure and coronary artery disease.
Doctors hope that if they’re able to head it off, they may help people exercise longer.
The study appears this week in JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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