2023-08-23 12:58:49
The risk of heart attack and stroke in adulthood is closely related to time spent sedentary during childhood. A study conducted by the University of Eastern Finland has revealed that hours of physical inactivity accumulated as children are linked to observable heart damage in adulthood, even in people with normal weight and blood pressure. “This means that spending too much time sitting down as a child, perhaps in front of a smartphone or tablet screen, can double the risk of having a heart attack or stroke as an adult”, underlines Pasquale Perrone Filardi, president of the Italian Society of cardiology (Sic), full professor of Cardiology and director of the School of Specialization in Diseases of the cardiovascular system at the University of Naples Federico II. The results of the study will be presented at the annual meeting of the European Society of Cardiology, which will be held in Amsterdam from 25 to 28 August.
In Italy – reads a note – a sedentary lifestyle is a real youth emergency. According to Istat data, there are around 2 million children in our country who do not practice sport or physical activity. Data from the ‘Okkio alla Salute’ surveillance system show that, in 2019, 20.3% of children did not perform any physical activity the day before the survey; 43.5% still have the TV in their bedroom and 44.5% spend more than 2 hours a day in front of the TV, tablet and mobile phone.
“In the new study, the researchers found that excessive sedentary lifestyles, which are now widespread in children and adolescents, literally weigh down the heart – explains Perrone Filardi – Previous studies conducted on adults have shown that a heavier heart increases the chances of a heart attack and stroke. So, children and adolescents should move more to protect their future heart health.”
The study – continues the note – is part of the Children of the 90s project of the University of Bristol, which began in 1990/1991 and is the first to have investigated the cumulative effect of sedentary time assessed through the use of smartwatches. A total of 766 children were involved, of which 55% were female and 45% male. At age 11, participants were made to wear a smartwatch for seven days to track their activities. The same thing was then repeated at 15 years and again at 24. The researchers measured the weight of the heart’s left ventricle by echocardiography at 17 and 24 years of age and the values were reported in grams relative to height. In this way it was possible to analyze the association between sedentary time between 11 and 24 years and heart measurements between 17 and 24 years, also taking into account other factors such as age, gender, blood pressure, body fat, smoking , physical activity, and socioeconomic status. The data indicate that at age 11, children were sedentary for an average of 362 minutes a day, rising to 474 minutes a day in adolescence (15 years) and 531 minutes a day in young adulthood (24 years).
“This means – says Ciro Indolfi, past president of the Sic – that the time spent in a sedentary way increased by an average of 169 minutes (2.8 hours) per day between childhood and early adulthood. The study results show that each minute of sedentary time from 11 to 24 years of age is associated with a 0.004 gram increase in height (g/m 2 ) in left ventricular mass between 17 to 24 years of age. age. When multiplied by 169 minutes of additional inactivity, this results in a daily increase of 0.7 g/m2, the equivalent of a 3-gram increase in left ventricular mass between echocardiographic measurements at average height increase”. An earlier study in adults found that a similar increase in left ventricular mass over seven years is associated with a doubled risk of heart disease, stroke and death.
“In the study, the children were sedentary for more than six hours a day and this number increased by almost three hours a day until they reached adulthood – conclude Perrone Filardi and Indolfi -. The results indicate that the accumulation of inactive time correlates with heart damage independent of body weight and blood pressure. Parents should therefore encourage children and adolescents to move more and limit the time spent on social media and video games. Because how you spend your days as a child can have a decisive influence on your future heart health”.
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