A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association will make for some provocative headlines. A group of researchers from Tufts University studied the cardiovascular risks of episodic physical and sexual activity, specifically in a cohort of habitually inactive patients. Compiling data from 14 studies, the study authors used a complex, multi-tiered study design and determined that there is a 3.5-fold elevated risk of a myocardial infarction (MI, heart attack) and five-fold increased risk of sudden cardiac death following an episode of unusual physical activity. The risk of MI was 2.7-fold greater following episodic sexual activity.
But study co-author Dr. Issa J. Dahabreh emphasized that the absolute risk in an individual for either cardiovascular event was still very small. For instance, the increase in absolute risk for sudden cardiac death after one hour of additional sexual or physical activity per week was one per 10,000 person-years, while the increased risk for MI was two to three per 10,000 person-years.
Remember, though, that these statistics apply to chronically inactive individuals only. For those who reported engaging in some kind of habitual physical activity, the risk of MI actually decreased by about 45 percent for each additional instance of physical activity performed per week, while the risk of sudden cardiac death fell by nearly one-third.
In an attached commentary, Dr. Eileen Handberg of the University of Florida, Gainesville, says, “I think this paper is going to get a lot of [media] play, but I’m not sure that this is anything more than what has already been said — that, basically, if you’re not in good shape, and if you try suddenly to be active, then you put yourself at risk.”
“If I had to add a minor caveat to Dr. Handberg’s statement, it would be to say that you’re putting yourself at an ‘increased risk’ because saying you’re putting yourself ‘at risk’ sounds a little too scary,” adds ACSH's Dr. Gilbert Ross. “I’d advise people to engage in a regular exercise program, and if they’ve been sedentary for a while, they should start off slow and consult with their doctor to come up with a suitable exercise program to avoid increased stress.”
