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Adulterers beware... it could raise your risk of heart attack 23rd March 20110 D& o2 j4 v; |# d# m; `4 I
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Having a fling or one-night stand is already a risky business. But now there is another reason for adulterers to worry. c/ J# G3 Q) I. U0 e6 _* t% [) h J8 l& O+ x, G) R9 W8 b
They are probably more at risk of having a heart attack. * h" [3 o5 U2 T: a# x) s: K: d$ L9 \/ N, x
Occasional sexual activity is much more likely to cause a heart attack than regular sex, researchers have found.+ t. C( G2 O2 N
8 a0 m' ^/ t8 s0 v: l4 ]% A7 h' ?The short-term risk of having a heart attack increases almost three-fold among those who rarely make love. , v3 i a& H: s5 B; h - J7 S2 X3 z' T6 pThose who have sex more often reduce the risk of it causing a heart attack – which means happily married couples could have the advantage. ! u; }5 D; e$ e8 ?* H. h [" e $ _: i, H; i1 m# s, b/ o: AA review of 14 studies of heart attacks found the heart is under strain during any form of ‘episodic’ physical activity – something an individual only does rarely.$ S$ D- O5 o1 Q& V3 m
( B& m) i0 _. i: Q, B, I* ~Overall, there is a 3.5 times higher risk of such activity triggering a heart attack.5 o& h9 E+ j+ Y$ m8 ]
) \) v( J/ V/ k; |! lThe risk after ‘episodic’ sexual activity – the kind associated with affairs and one-night stands – is 2.7 times higher.. r9 M! I8 q4 v) [3 r
+ y D0 ]' [% H8 XBut the more active an individual is, either sexually or physically, the lower the risk falls, said the review in the Journal of the American Medical Association. , f3 e r, g3 T% J2 g $ g) L, M: t0 F0 o" n0 F' e+ ]! rThe relative risk of heart attack caused by a burst of activity falls by around 45 per cent for each additional time a person indulges in it a week. The risk of sudden cardiac death also falls by 30 per cent. , D w8 h' Y% j+ a3 C& {. D - U& c& W, t" YThe researchers, from the Tufts Medical Centre and Harvard School of Public Health, stress that the number of heart attacks actually caused by sex will be low.3 s6 ?8 F) X/ s0 Q' y3 P7 v
1 B% j' A* V9 H" G# }Like any physical activity, sex can increase the heart rate and blood pressure, which means the heart has to work harder. As a result, sex carries the same risk of triggering heart trouble as equally energetic forms of physical activity. # `( B" b- ~0 `7 o7 ], j! Y3 `, Y, C/ w/ }3 h2 u0 D
The higher risk during activity is then offset by a lower ‘everyday’ background risk for people who are fitter because they are more active.1 [# |! F$ ~( d2 l
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Amy Thompson, senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, said: ‘It’s important to distinguish between what causes a heart attack, and what potentially triggers it.( W+ x! i: f0 j" P' D
1 k+ w0 s: ]" q9 _- G; b'The study shows sex can act as a trigger, but this doesn’t change our viewpoint on the health benefits of physical activity.; ]: v7 C- q( d, w9 k1 j
4 v2 r- r5 w- m+ {6 ^‘To help keep your heart healthy you should aim to do 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity, such as a brisk walk or gardening, at least five times a week. 9 z% n8 _. P7 V4 H! Y" W' Y& |$ } : r, |6 _# J9 W: ~3 O2 o* M. u'Sex places no more stress on the heart than climbing a couple of flights of stairs, so people with or without heart disease need not avoid it.’