Exercise Is Safe, Improves Outcomes For Patients With Heart Failure
Jacksonville – In recent news, the American Heart Association has declared that the quality, functionality, and overall well-being of heart failure patients can improve with light exercise.
While doctors use to prescribe a sedentary lifestyle for those who have experienced heart failure, recently doctors say otherwise. The issue with heart failure is that the blood being pumped into the heart and away from the heart is slowed, thus, congestion and other symptoms that ultimately result in heart failure.
Exercise is the new recommended prescription for heart failure. Why? Well, exercise increases the strength of the heart with increased blood flow in and out of the heart and through all the working extremities. Those who exercise will also experience an increase in overall muscle strength and will notice energy levels are higher than normal.
Although current studies do not show significant data for exercise, it is still evident that exercise has decreased heart failure patient’s risk of death and hospitalization.
However, this is not to say heart failure patients should go exercise crazy. People have their limits, therefore, one should consult their physician and should approach exercise in moderation.
Moderate exercise might look like walking five times a week for thirty minutes, leisurely biking, or working on an elliptical machine. Whichever the exercise may be, the important common theme is light aerobic activity.
As patients undergo a consistent exercise regiment they will notice an improvement in exercise capabilities. Such improvements may mean the ability to increase walking time or upgrading from walking to light jogging. However, this is occurs over time. The body gets stressed from the exercise, then adapts. Once the body has adapted the body has become stronger. Thus, aerobically your heart will be lightly stressed, but ultimately will strengthen through adaptations.
