HC1 – Exercise in Medicine (04/09)
Pandemic: “in view of the prevalence, global reach, and health effect of physical inacitivity,
the issue should be appropriately described as pandemic, with far-reaching health,
economic, environmental, and social consequences.
Low fitness kills more people than ‘smokadiabesity’
→ ‘sitting is the new smoking’
• Short term
o Glucose and insulin levels go up
o Sitting down causes the muscles to go into “standby” mode within minutes
o Triglycerides pile up in the bloodstream
o Levels of fatmetabolizing enzyme lipoprotein lipase plunge by up to 95%
• Long term
o Increase in waist size
o Risk of diabetes
o Increased risk of back pain
o Risk of psychological stress
o Weight gain, especially among woman
o Increased risk of colon cancer
o Risk of heart disease
→ sitting: risk for heart disease!
• Research: Coronary heart disease and physical activity of work
• Results: Sedentary London bus drivers / telephonists were at a higher risk of cardiac
events than were their more active conductor / postmen peers!
Moderate-intensity: heartrate and breathing will go up; you are able to have a good
conversation without interruption; 5 days a week.
VO2Max: good measure for physical activity
• Low levels of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) are associated with a high risk of
cardiovascular disease, all-cause mortality, and mortality rates attributable to various
cancers.
• ‘Cardiorespiratory Fitness is the only major risk factor for cardiovascular disease and
mortality that is not assessed in clinical practice’
• ‘The addition of CRF for risk classification presents health professionals with unique
opportunities to improve patient management and to encourage lifestyle-based
strategies designed to reduce cardiovascular risk.’
1
,Long term benefits of exercise
WHO guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour
Moderate intensity = heartrate rises, but it is still possible to talk
3 most common excuses for not being physically active:
1. No time
a. Exercise does not take a lot of time
2. Makes me tired
3. Makes me sweat
Exercise Snacks: A Novel Strategy to Improve Cardiometabolic Health
For example: Jumping Jacks, Lunges or Squats between lectures
Exercise is medicine
Hippocrates: “if we could give every individual the right amount of nourishment and
exercise, not too little and not too much, we would have found the safest way to health.”
→ People choose for pills and surgery, rather than lifestyle change
Medication versus Exercise
VB → Hypertension
2
,Research: “How does exercise treatment compare with antihypertensive medications? A
network meta-analysis of 391 randomised controlled trials assessing exercise and medication
effects on systolic blood pressure.”
• What is already known?
o Exercise interventions are effective in lowering systolic blood pressure
• What are the new findings?
o Across all populations, individuals who receive antihypertensive medications
tend to achieve greater reductions in systolic blood pressure than those who
adopt structured exercise regimes.
o In populations with hypertension, different types of exercise interventions
appear to be equally effective as most antihypertensive medications
o Structured exercise has not been evaluated as extensively as antihypertensive
medications.
VB → Mortality outcomes
Bewegen minstens zo effectief als medicijnen op mortaliteitsuitkomsten voor:
• Preventie van diabetes
• Secundaire preventie van hart/vaatziekten
• Revalidatie na CVA
• Behandeling van hartfalen
Indication
• Exercise during cancer treatment: less fatigue, less fear and depression, improvement
of physical function, improvement quality of life (QoL)
Exercise → less pain killers, less surgery, less ‘sickness leave’
Prehabilitation → better treatment outcome, less complications
Physical activity is an intervention with few adverse events that may improve pain severity
and physical function, and consequent quality of life.
Side effects: injuries (musculoskeletal)
Even during pregnancy and with lactation: all women without contraindication should be
physically active throughout pregnancy.
Warnings/precautions
• Start low, go slow
• 1 hour after meal
• Combine with healthy food, plenty of water and enough sleep
• Do not combine with smoking
• Be carefully with heat
Contra-indications & risk → preventive examination and personalized exercise prescription
F.I.T.T. → Frequency, Intensity, Time (duration), Type
Personalized prescription of exercise based on risk factors, mental and/or physical
limitations, injuries, motivation and obesity.
3
, Summarise
1. Physical inactivity is pandemic
2. Cardiorespiratory fitness is a vital sign
3. Prescribe exercise to your patients
Also important:
o WHO Guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour 2020
https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/337001/9789240014886-eng.pdf
o Exercise is Medicine – Factsheet, available via
https://www.exerciseismedicine.org/assets/page_documents/EIM%20Fact%20Sheet
%202014_update%20March%202018.pdf
o The Miracle Drug: Exercise is Medicine, available via
https://www.exerciseismedicine.org/assets/page_documents/EIM_HCP_1_Page_Sum
mary.pdf
o Physical inactivity and non-communicable disease burden in low-income, middle-
income and high-income countries Br J Sports Med. 2022 Jan;56(2):101-106. doi:
10.1136/bjsports-2020-103640. Epub 2021 Mar 29
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33782046/
o Exercise as medicine - evidence for prescribing exercise as therapy in 26 different
chronic diseases Scand J Med Sci Sports . 2015 Dec;25 Suppl 3:1-72. doi:
10.1111/sms.12581.https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26606383/
4
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller lynnverver. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $6.57. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.