Research published in Nature Cardiovascular Research reveals that women may experience significantly greater heart health benefits from exercise compared to men. The study indicates that females adhering to recommended exercise guidelines could see a three-fold reduction in mortality risk from coronary heart disease.
According to the findings, women who meet the guideline target of at least 150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity each week have a 22% lower risk of developing coronary heart disease, while the reduction for men stands at 17%. This disparity suggests that existing health guidelines may not adequately address the differences between genders, highlighting the need for sex-specific recommendations.
The research team, led by Jiajin Chen from Xiamen University, analyzed data from the UK Biobank, which included information from over 85,000 participants. Their study focused on the relationship between physical activity levels and coronary heart disease outcomes, particularly emphasizing the differences in exercise capacity between genders.
Among the participants without coronary heart disease, female individuals achieved a remarkable 30% reduction in risk when engaging in 250 minutes of activity per week. In contrast, men would need to engage in around 530 minutes of physical activity to achieve a similar reduction in risk. This finding underscores the potential for tailored exercise recommendations that consider gender differences in health outcomes.
In a separate analysis involving 5,169 participants diagnosed with coronary heart disease, adherence to exercise guidelines correlated with a three-fold greater reduction in all-cause mortality risk for women compared to men. These results emphasize the importance of recognizing sex differences in health research and the potential for targeted strategies to enhance coronary heart disease prevention and management.
Despite current guidelines from the World Health Organization, American Heart Association, and European Society of Cardiology recommending a uniform approach to physical activity, this research suggests that a gender-specific strategy could lead to better health outcomes for women.
Further investigations in more diverse populations are necessary to confirm these findings and to develop tailored recommendations that effectively address the unique health needs of different genders. The study received support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Fujian Provincial Health Technology Project, and the Xiamen Science and Technology Project.
As coronary heart disease remains the leading cause of illness and death globally, these insights could have significant implications for public health and individual health management strategies.
