CERG discussed their research projects with “America’s Doctor”

Last week the United States Surgeon General, Vivek H. Murthy, held a lecture at the annual meeting of the American College of Sport Medicine (ACSM) about his Call to Action to Promote Walking and Walkable Communities.

In his initiative to improve the health of the American people he stated that he aimed to walk the talk by implementing the best science for the benefit of the society. He wants to help people of all ages protect and improve their health and reduce risk of obesity and disease through regular physical activity and a healthy diet.

Healthy heart beats – the protective effect from increased heart rate variability

Many people believe that the frequency of our heart beats follows a fixed rhythm, but that is not the fact. Measurement of the electrical signals from the heart show that tiny differences occur between each heartbeat, also called heart rate variability (HRV). An average heart rate of 60 beat per minute does not mean that the interval between successive heartbeats would be exactly one second. In fact the heart beats may vary from 0.5 to 2.0 second. The interplay between the circulatory system organs and the autonomic nervous system is affected by complex biosignals (such as heart rate) which in turn contribute to a dynamic balance between the brain and the cardiovascular system.  HRV is used as an indicator of the activity of the autonomic nervous system. A high HRV, which is evaluated to be associated with good cardiovascular health, indicates dominance of the parasympathetic response, the side of the autonomic nervous system that promotes relaxation, digestion, sleep, and recovery. The research literature has also established that individuals with a range of psychiatric disorders have reduced HRV, but more research in this field is needed.

CERG at science fair for children

CERG had the privilege of joining the Biralee International School Science Fair in Trondheim to witness the brilliance of young scientists in the making.

Everyone at the school (from the very young 3-4 year olds to the 10 graders) participated in the science fair.

The youngest pupils focused on a single project and tried to find out if the seed can grow when things it needs to become a plant are taken away or what happens to fruit when it is exposed to air and water.

Exercise Training as Medicine in Trondheim

April 18^th 2016 the Norwegian National Advisory Unit on Exercise Training as Medicine for Cardiopulmonary Conditions was officially opened at St. Olav’s Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital in Norway.

The advisory unit concerns the dissemination of knowledge about exercise training as treatment for people with coronary heart disease, heart failure, peripheral artery disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The service is involved in education, research and promotion of exercise training as medicine for those cardiopulmonary conditions.

Obesity in youth leads to cardiac death in adulthood

Overweight and obesity has increased significantly recent decades among children and teenagers. Studies have shown that in some Western countries, up to one third of children and teenagers are obese. The New England Journal of Medicine recently published a study where the relationship between BMI (body mass index) and heart disease in 2.3 million youths from Israel were examined. The special features of this study are the large sample of youths who were investigated, and the correlation between BMI in teenagers and heart disease in midlife.

Does it matter if you exercise indoors or outdoors?

It is well documented that physical activity has favorable health effects, but does it matter where you exercise? Are there more health benefits of exercising outdoors compared to indoors?

Some prefer working out in the gym or in the privacy of their own home, while others enjoy getting out for some fresh air. Exercise is good for you whether you prefer doing it indoors or outdoors. However, according to a systematic review that included more than 800 adults, outdoor exercise was associated with more health benefits compared to indoor activity.

Data from eleven controlled trials were included in the study. The results showed favorable effects on self- reported mental health after exercising outdoors. These effects were not seen after exercising indoors. Exercising outdoors was associated with decreased depression, anger and tension.

Exercise reduced burden of atrial fibrillation

“Time in atrial fibrillation and symptoms of the disease were reduced, and exercise capacity, cardiac function, lipid levels and quality of life were improved in the patients preforming high intensity interval training”, PhD candidate at CERG and medical doctor at St. Olavs Hospital,  Vegard Malmo.

He is first author in the paper “Aerobic Interval training reduces the burden of atrial fibrillation in the short term: A randomized trial” recently published in Circulation. In this study, 51 persons with non-permanent atrial fibrillation (AF) were randomized either to high intensity interval training (four 4-minute intervals at 85-95% of peak heart) rate three times a week for 12 weeks or a control group (continuing their earlier exercise habits). Minutes of AF each day was monitored continuously with an implanted recorder. In addition cardiac function, exercise capacity, lipid status, quality of life and AF symptoms were assessed.

The Physically Active Less Prone to Post-Heart Attack Depression

Depression is common and estimates suggest that in a family of four, one of the family members will likely suffer from mental health problems. Depression is even 3 times more common in patients after a heart attack than in the general population. Depression after a heart attack is bad not only because of the accompanying emotional distress, it also increases the risk of having another heart attack or premature death.

Studies of patients with coronary heart disease with elevated depressive symptoms support that exercise is just as effective as antidepressant drugs, and that the reduction in depressive symptoms among those participating in cardiac rehabilitation is related to improvements in fitness. All together the existing literature gives support for a positive effect of aerobic exercise on depressive symptoms in patients with established heart disease.

PAI – Personal Activity Intelligence – introduced to the world

Close to 175 000 attendees, including 6000 journalists, visited to the worlds largest convention for consumer electronics, CES, last week in Las Vegas. Among them was head of CERG, professor Ulrik Wisløff, who together with Canadian wearable company Mio Global introduced PAI, Personal Activity Intelligence to the worlds technology press.

PAI is a result of research based on the HUNT study where more than 60 000 individuals has been monitored over a period of more than 20 years. The goal is to make PAI the new world standard of activity tracking. PAI is an individual metric that makes sense of measured heart rate data, and significantly reduces the risk of lifestyle related diseases.

Enjoy the Christmas holiday, but stay active!

In 1966 a legendary study from Dallas was published where they studied the effect of total inactivity for 3 weeks. After this 3 week period, the so-called “Dallas bed-rest study” found an increase in body weight, body-fat and a marked decline in fitness level. 30 years later they followed up the same participants and re-examined their health status. As one might expect after 30 years of aging, both body weight, body fat percentage and fitness declined from the happy 20s (before the 3 weeks of bed-rest). However, they found that they were in better shape after 30 years of aging than they were after 3 weeks of inactivity! What many researchers are asking now is if the decline in fitness associated with aging is caused by lower activity level with aging compared to activity level as young.

Some of this we are trying to answer with the Generation 100 study, which you can read more about in our blog here!