Playing football twice a week helps to significantly lower blood pressure, stabilize the heart rate and get rid of body fat, say Danish scientists. According to Science Daily, researchers consider this form of physical activity to be more effective than traditional doctors’ advice on diet and exercise.
A study by scientists from the University of Copenhagen shows that playing football on a regular basis over the course of three months positively influenced many risk factors for heart disease, such as VOXNUMX max, heart rate, flexibility of blood vessels, blood pressure, cholesterol level and the amount of body fat. Moreover, soccer was better than strength training and jogging.
Dr. Peter Krustrup, who led the study, conducted experiments in which he compared the results of people who were recommended to play soccer twice a week with those of people who did other exercises, as well as the results of people who were not active at all.
Our research has shown that football is a universal and intense form of exercise that positively affects the risk factors for cardiovascular disease in physically inactive women and men, says Dr. Krustrup, adding that football may and should be recommended by doctors patients suffering from hypertension.
To achieve satisfactory results, you do not need to complete a real team. As the scientist points out, equally good results were observed in teams of two, three or four people.
It is well known that lack of physical activity is a significant risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases. What is new, however, is the fact that such a pleasant team game can effectively support the treatment of hypertension, adds research co-author Lars Juel Andersen from the Copenhagen Gentofte Hospital (PAP).