According to a study, millions of Americans are at risk of stroke if they exercise too much.
Researchers found that people with carotid artery stenosis, which affects an estimated five percent of the country, are at risk of suddenly developing blood clots in the brain during simple activities like a brisk walk, swimming or even zumba.
During strenuous exercise, plaques in the main arteries can become loose and travel to the brain, where they block a blood vessel and cause a stroke.
From this it can be concluded that up to 16.5 million Americans do not want to perform at their best during their training.
Study Suggests Intense Exercise May Increase Stroke Risk (stock)
Pictured above is a carotid artery with plaques (left) and without plaques (right). Everyone has two carotid arteries that run down either side of the neck (pictured)
Carotid artery stenosis is a condition in which plaque builds up in the carotid arteries, narrowing the space through which blood flows.
These arteries run through the neck and are responsible for carrying blood, which contains vital nutrients and oxygen, to the brain and parts of the face.
Sudden increases in blood pressure, such as during exercise, can cause plaque to detach – which can trigger a stroke.
Figures show that the number of Americans with carotid artery stenosis has skyrocketed over the past two decades.
It was estimated that about two million Americans suffered from the disease in the early 2000s. But now the Cleveland Clinic says about five percent of all adults have the disease — or 16.5 million people.
According to scientists, being overweight or obese is a major risk factor for the disease. A sedentary lifestyle, diabetes or smoking also increase the risk.
In the study, published this week in the journal Physics of Fluids, scientists created a computer simulation of one of the carotid arteries.
They simulated three carotid arteries: one healthy, one with a “mild” 30 percent blockage, and one with a “severe” 50 percent blockage.
Each was then subjected to an exercise-induced heart rate of 140 beats per minute (BPM), which can be achieved by brisk walking, cycling and Zumba for overweight people, among others.
They were also simulated under conditions of a resting heart rate of 67 and a moderate exercise rate of 100 beats per minute.
Scientists found that the health of healthy and easily clogged carotid arteries was improved with physical activity.
However, for those with severe blockage, the results have been described as “worrying”.
The model showed stress on the area, which increased the risk of the stenosis rupturing and some of the plaque leaking into the bloodstream.
These could then travel to the brain and lodge in a blood vessel within the organ, blocking the flow of oxygen and causing a stroke.
dr Somnath Roy, a mechanical engineer at the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur outside Kolkata and the study’s lead author, said, “Intense exercise shows adverse effects in patients with intermediate or higher levels of stenosis.”
“It significantly increases shear stress at the stenosis zone, which can lead to rupture of the stenosis.”
“This ruptured plaque can then travel to the brain and its blood supply, causing an ischemic stroke.”
The scientists added in the paper: “While strenuous exercise may be helpful in improving cardiac output in healthy individuals, it can have extremely negative consequences in patients with extensive arterial obstructions at elevated heart rates due to vigorous physical activity.”
The image above shows the carotid arteries at three different beats per minute in healthy subjects and those with a 30 percent and 50 percent blockage. This was based on computer models
Previous studies, including a 2010 analysis of stroke patients, found that exercise at least doubled the risk of stroke.
A meta-analysis of 13,000 strokes in Europe in 2021 also found that acute anger, emotional upset and heavy physical exertion were associated with a higher risk of stroke.
The authors found that all of this increased heart rate and increased the risk of plaque breaking off and causing a stroke.
dr Andrew Smyth, an epidemiologist at the National University of Ireland, Galway and leader of this study, told TODAY, “We think these trigger events can increase heart rate, increase blood pressure and lead to hormonal changes that alter blood flow in vessels.” .in the brain, which can increase the risk of stroke.
“However, not every episode of anger, emotional upset, or heavy physical exertion leads to a stroke.”
“Similarly, not every person who has a high burden of cardiovascular risk factors will have a stroke.”
Among the limitations of the latest study was that it was a model and may not accurately represent how events would unfold in real life.
The experts warned that the model may also have overestimated the speed at which blood moves when the heart rate increases, which affected the results.
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