Emotional stress during sports events can be hard on the heart
Emotional stress during sports events can be hard on the heart
As an avid football fan, I know the feeling.
Your team is down by a point or two, the clock is ticking away the final seconds, your team gets the ball
Yep – it can be heart wrenching. Literally
With March Madness upon us, avid basketball fans with coronary heart disease should take note of a recent New England Journal of Medicine study.
Researchers in Munich, Germany, tracked records of emergency cardiovascular events that took place during the World Cup soccer match and compared them to emergency cardiovascular events that took place during four control periods when no soccer matches occurred.
Results showed that during World Cup matches:
- Cardiac emergencies were more than 2.5 more likely compared to control periods
- Among men, cardiac emergencies were 3.26 times more likely
- Among women, cardiac emergencies were 1.82 times more likely
During World Cup play, patients with existing heart disease made up nearly half of the cardiac emergencies, but during control periods, heart disease patients accounted for less than 30 percent of cardiac emergencies.
So men, if your brackets go down in flames, try to take it easy. A little chamomile tea between beers might help.
Source:
“Cardiovascular Events During World Cup Soccer” The New England Journal of Medicine” Vol. 358, No. 5, 1/31/08, content.nejm.org
