Imagine that people of your age do certain routines just to keep themselves fit and healthy. But you, on the other hand, waste your time doing nothing.
The biggest threat to your health is not something that moves due to lifestyle, or that is natural to you. The biggest threat is what we usually do the longest, doing nothing at all.
In pioneering research from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, researchers found that spending a complete three weeks of rest causes young and healthy men to develop a weak cardiovascular system.
As a consequence, it affects heart health and your ability to prevent any symptoms of aging. Lying in bed for at least 21 days is equivalent to losing your cardiovascular strength for over three decades in a period.
The research proves that moving around and doing some physical activities are not simply a menu to add to your routine. It is essentially part of your survival.
Lying in bed can be beneficial. But as they say, too much can be too harmful. This article discusses the bad effects of bed rotting on your heart health.
What You Should Know About the Study?
The experiment was started in 1966 when many healthy young men in their 20s participated in the strict bed test.
These healthy men were locked in for three weeks with strict implementation of no walking, standing, or even moving. In this case, not doing anything is relevant to the cardiovascular system.
A comprehensive physiological evaluation of the participants, especially on the capacity of their cardiovascular system to adapt to any response. Three weeks of complete bed rest, and 8 weeks of heavy training.
After three weeks of full three-week bed rest, the findings reveal that participants have a significant drop in their cardiovascular fitness. Certain tests administered by the researchers included cardiac output and maximum oxygen uptake.
During the full three-week bed rest, participants have their endurance greatly decreased, their blood volume becomes narrow, and their hearts lose their strength.
In short, the cardiovascular fitness of these participants became synonymous with that of people in their 50s or 60s.
However, these same participants are tested again by the researchers. But this time, the participants are already in their 50s.
The recent findings about these participants prove that normal aging does not greatly affect their heart health, compared to the bed rest experiment they did when they were in their 20s.
It means that since people in their prime to young adulthood must move more to protect their heart from developing severe health complications.
What Impact Does It Have on Your Heart and Health?
Your heart is not just a vital organ with a special purpose in your overall health. It is also a muscle.
Just like the muscles in your body, it must be used consistently to make it grow and become more functional. If you don’t, the muscle will also stop growing and will shrink in time.
A weak heart means a vulnerable heart. It must be actively used to make it stronger and resilient against harmful forces. This will also take a toll on your overall health.
Spending too much time on prolonged sitting, a sedentary lifestyle, and bed rest provides harmful consequences to your body.
Not just that, your other body systems will also be at risk.
How Does Inactivity Cause Damage to Your Body?
Do you know that your body is craving daily movement? Yes, because it helps your body stay stable and energized for the whole day.
Other people may also do it with intervals or in weekly frequency; however, they are consistently doing some physical activities.
Doing some physical activities is not only for people who are elderly, sickly, or bedridden. It’s for everyone. But more critical to the young people and their health.
Inactivity causes negative changes in your body, and it can also affect the health of your organs, before it creates significant damage to your overall health.
When a person is inactive, it may cause fatigue, insulin resistance, and weight gain, which leads to slow metabolism. This can also cause lower endurance in your body, as daily tasks tend to be exhausting to you.
Inactive lifestyle also shrinks your muscles, which is revealed through the loss of mobility and strength.
Aside from these reasons, inactivity leads to poor oxygen and blood circulation. It makes your heart weak and your blood count lower.
The longer you are inactive, the riskier it becomes to your overall health.
Why is Inactivity a Real Problem and Not Aging?
Humans develop, even their life stages develop as well. It is natural for human beings to face aging as they reach middle age.
But many tend to fear this, even though aging does not equate to the harmful effects of unhealthy living. Aging is health, and it is a human nature that we cannot evade.
However, your body must be given the exact readiness it requires to remain strong and resilient in your later years. Keeping active would not be a problem for you.
So why start reversing the effects of inactivity while you’re young? Men in the 1966 study are reported as physically healthy. But due to inactivity, their heart health gradually decreased during the 21 complete bed rest.
The truth is that you can reverse the effects of inactivity to make your heart stronger and healthier. Start young and you will experience the benefits of being active.
If you start to reverse inactivity in your 50s, remember that inactivity has already rubbed elbows with your aging period at that time.
This means that if you start being active today, your overall health can still be optimal as you grow much older.
Why Does Your Body Rapidly Degrade as You Become Inactive?
There are numerous reasons why inactivity is your speedy enemy compared to other chronic illnesses, and an unhealthy lifestyle and diet.
Inactivity is effective in self-sabotage, which makes your body system not function properly.
When you decide to become inactive, your risk of developing a disease may increase, which also promotes inflammation. This may also release the protein waste in the bloodstream, which shrinks your body muscles.
Not doing anything can also affect your heart’s function. It works minimally, blood may stagnate, and the oxygen delivery is lacking and unequally distributed.
This decline is also true for people who have been sick or recovering from a surgery for the longest time. Their heart have lost significant strength and function, which makes them feel dizzy and weak as they try to move.
Your body needs only enough rest to recover, but not much rest to overly relax.
Signs To Know That Bear the Same Effects as Uninterrupted 21-Day Bed Rest
Even if you haven’t been one of the participants of the study published in 1968 by the UTSMS researchers, certain habits bear the same negative effects as bed rest.
If these signs are familiar to you, it’s a sign that your heart is getting weaker due to these actions. Here are the signs that you must know:
- Depending on the effects of energy drinks to keep yourself awake.
- Long hours spent watching TV or surfing on the computer.
- Lack of daily walking activity or any physical exercise.
- Sitting for more than 8 hours a day without interruption.
These signs are bad for your health. They have imitated the worst effects of the 21-day uninterrupted bed rest.
Always remember to slowly break down these activities to protect your heart.
How to Improve Your Heart Health?
Your heart health determines the strength of your cardiovascular activity. This will help you ensure a total, smooth blood and oxygen circulation throughout your body.
If you’re not convinced of going to the gym for cardio activities, these are some tips to improve your cardiovascular strength:
Do Some Movement Breaks
Make any movements that can break your long hours of inactivity. Sitting for too long? Stand and walk. Not feeling yourself? Do some stretching and perform some squats.
- Perform a daily walking
Don’t underestimate your 20 to 40-minute daily walking. This activity not only keeps your heart active, but it also ensures normal blood flow and sufficient heart strength.
- Exercise with Activities that Require Light Strength
Do some activities everywhere that require a few of your strengths to perform them. Your goal is to make your heart healthily pump blood each and every day.
- Drink Your Water Regularly
Drinking water can improve your blood count and also stabilize your body temperature. But make sure to drink water as your body actually needs.
- Start Moving After Eating
Eating can spike your blood sugar, which can also affect the blood and oxygen flow in your body. To reduce such risk, you make some movements 30 minutes to an hour after finishing your meals.
The good news? This can help you reverse the bad effects of inactivity. Remember what the UTSMS implemented after the full 21-day bed rest? They provide an exercise plan to the participants.
After several weeks of an exercise plan and months of getting back to a cardio routine, they have effectively improved their health condition.
Their cardiovascular capacity improved, an increase in blood volume is present, and their hearts became healthier. Another benefit of battling inactivity is that you can exceed your fitness levels.
Through some activities, you have regained your entire health from inactivity.
Final Takeaway
Treat your vital organs as if they were one of your visible body muscles. To flex them, you must be consistent in stretching these organs for optimal and more expanded usage.
Whether it’s your heart, brain, or any other organs, treat them as you would to gain the biceps you found on social media.
If three weeks of bed rest can age your cardiovascular system like or more than the three decades of your life. The damage must be reversed to make your heart young, growing, and more active.
Your heart craves what it consistently needs to keep it pumping.
Don’t let the power of inactivity dominate you. Regain your territorial control over your body.
Start now, and your entire organs will be forever grateful for your outstanding management.