Lift weights for a healthy heart
While it is well known that physical activities promote heart health, a new study suggests that weightlifting, rather than walking and cycling, can better help keep heart diseases at bay. The study showed that engaging in both static activities such as strength training and dynamic activities like walking and cycling was associated with 30 to 70 per cent lower rates of cardiovascular disease risk factors. But, the associations were strongest for strength training among youth than older adults. “Both strength training and aerobic activity appeared to be heart healthy, even in small amounts, at the population level,” said Maia P Smith, Assistant Professor at St George’s University in Grenada. “However, static activity appeared more beneficial than dynamic,” Smith added. Further, the researchers suggested that clinicians should counsel patients to exercise regardless of activity types as patients who did both types of physical activity fared better than patients who simply increased the level of one type of activity.
Mortality inlow-income countries
In a recent study, researchers measured the burden of antibiotic resistance in low — or middle — income countries, and reported that in-hospital mortality is significantly higher among patients infected with multi-drug resistant (MDR) or extensively drug-resistant (XDR) pathogens. Researchers at the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics and Policy analysed antimicrobial susceptibility testing results and mortality outcomes for over 4,000 patients. Pathogens were classified as MDR or XDR based on drug susceptibility profiles. Mortality data was restricted to in-hospital deaths. The overall mortality rate among all study participants was 13.1 per cent, with mortality as high as 29.0 per cent among patients infected with A baumannii.
How honking is related to obesity
Are you obese or overweight? Blame long-term exposure to blaring horns and other noise from road traffic, say researchers. The study showed that a 10 decibel (dB) increase in mean noise level was associated with a 17 per cent increase in obesity. “Our analysis shows that people exposed to the highest levels of traffic noise are at greater risk of being obese” said Maria Foraster, lead researcher from the Barcelona Institute for Global Health in Spain. It could be because noise generates stress and affects our sleep. It alters hormone levels and increases blood pressure. Moreover, among other effects, sleep disturbance deregulates glucose metabolism and alters the appetite, the researchers explained. “In the long term, these effects could give rise to chronic physiological alterations, which would explain the proven association between persistent exposure to traffic-related noise and cardiovascular disease or obesity,” Foraster said.