Just 30 minutes of running on a treadmill can reshape your damaged heart tissue, researchers have found in a study…
(PHOTO: AFP)
Just 30 minutes of running on a treadmill can reshape your damaged heart tissue, researchers have found in a study which proved that exercise could be just as important for the heart health as controlled cholesterol and a healthy diet.
The findings showed that just a single session of endurance exercise — activities that increase breathing and heart rate such as walking, jogging, swimming — increased the expression of genes that are used to repair damaged DNA and helped remodel heart tissue.
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"The genes that are important for genome stability are upregulated in the heart tissue after a single bout of endurance exercise. This may contribute to the protective effects of exercise on cardiovascular health," said Stephen Roth, Professor at the University of Maryland in the US.
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In the study, published in the journal Experimental Physiology, the scientists observed the hearts of a mice, who ran for half an hour on a treadmill.
The results are also applicable to humans since these genes are regulated in a similar way to those in humans, the researchers noted.
The study may be important for understanding how exercise provides a protective effect on the heart.
By understanding this process and basic heart biology, future research may lead to increased life expectancy and drug-free cures for chronic heart problems, including high blood pressure.
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