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Traffic - Risk of a Heart
Attack?
posted November 08, 2004
The longer you spend sitting in
traffic, the higher your risk of a heart attack.
This does not just mean sitting in a traffic jam - it includes cycling in
traffic or being a bus passenger, within an hour of your being out there among
the cars and other vehicles.
This study, carried out by the GSF-National Research Centre for Environment and
Health in Neuherberg, Germany, says we can officially add traffic to our long
list of heart attack triggers, such as stress, bad diet, lack of exercise,
over-strenuous exercise, anger, anxiety …etc.
Annette Peters, team head, said "It seems difficult to avoid these exposures
because transport is an important part of our daily lives." Researchers spoke to
691 heart attack survivors between Feb 1999 and July 2001. The volunteers were
asked to try to identify what triggered their heart attacks. They were also
asked how long they spent in traffic.
Their findings indicated that people who spent the longest in traffic had the
highest risk of heart attack.
72% were in cars when in traffic. 8% had been in traffic just before their heart
attack.
The highest risk people were women and all people over 60 (within an hour of
being exposed to traffic).
The peak time for heart attacks as a result of traffic exposure was the morning
rush hour. The morning rush hour tends to have more pollution and congestion
than other peak times during the day - such as 5pm to 6pm and school pick up
times.
Health experts are coming to realize that air pollution's main health side
effect is cardiovascular.
One way of reducing your risk is to keep yourself healthy in the first place,
say experts. Keep yourself fit, keep your blood pressure down, blood sugars
normal, do not smoke, sleep well and eat carefully.
Experts were surprised that cyclist are also at risk within an hour of being
exposed to traffic.
Source: Diabetes In Control.com: New England Journal of Medicine Oct. 2004.
November 2004 News Article Index
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