Exercise and A Healthy Heart

Did you know that exercise is one of the safest, most effective ways to prevent and treat chronic diseases such as heart disease?

This common-sense advice was again confirmed in a meta-review conducted by researchers at Harvard University and Stanford University,1 which compared the effectiveness of exercise versus drug interventions on mortality outcomes for four common conditions: Diabetes Coronary heart disease Heart failure Stroke

After reviewing 305 randomized controlled trials, which included nearly 339,300 people, they found "no statistically detectable differences" between physical activity and medications for pre-diabetes and heart disease.

 Exercise was also found to be more effective than drugs after you've had a stroke. The only time drugs beat exercise was for the recovery from heart failure, in which case diuretic medicines produced a better outcome. The drugs assessed in the studies included: Statins and beta blockers for coronary heart disease Diuretics and beta blockers for heart failure Anticoagulants and anti-platelets for stroke