Athletic lifestyles ‘can be associated with future heart problems’

A new UK study has shed light on the reasons why people with athletic lifestyles often have abnormal heart rhythms later in life.

Research from the University of Manchester, funded by the British Heart Foundation, has assessed rodents and found molecular changes in the heart's pacemaker that occur in response to exercise training.

These can lead to heart rhythm disturbances, known as arrhythmias, among endurance athletes, causing their hearts to beat only 30 times per minute or even less at night, sometimes prompting losses of consciousness.

It goes some way to explaining why elderly athletes with a lifelong training history are more likely to need an artificial electronic pacemaker fitted, according to the scientists.

However, Professor Mark Boyett, lead researcher on the study, was sure to note: "Although endurance exercise training can have harmful effects on the heart, it is more than outweighed by the beneficial effects."

Arrhythmias are experienced by more than one million people annually in the UK and are one of the top ten reasons why people go to hospital.