Hypertension in master endurance athletes.
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether long-term very vigorous endurance training prevents hypertension.


METHODS
Cohort study of master orienteering runners and controls.


METHODS
Finland.


METHODS
In 1995, a health questionnaire was completed by 264 male orienteering runners (response rate 90.4%) who had been top-ranked in competitions among men aged 35-59 years in 1984, and by 388 similarly aged male controls (response rate 87.1%) who were healthy at the age of 20 years and free of overt ischemic heart disease in 1985.


METHODS
Self-report of medication for hypertension.


RESULTS
In the endurance athlete group, the crude prevalence (8.7%) of subjects who had used medication for hypertension was less than a third of that in the control group (27.8%). Even after adjusting for age and body mass index, the difference between the groups was still significant (odds ratio for athletes 0.43, 95% confidence interval 0.25-0.76).


CONCLUSIONS
Long-term vigorous endurance training is associated with a low prevalence of hypertension. Some of the effect can be explained by a lower body mass, but exercise seems to induce a lower rate of hypertension by other mechanisms than by decreasing body weight
Hernelahti
M
M
Unit for Sports and Exercise Medicine, Institute of Biomedicine, University of Helsinki, Finland. urho.kujala@helsinki.fi
Kujala
U M
UM
Kaprio
J
J
Karjalainen
J
J
Sarna
S
S
D000368:Aged; D000428:Alcohol Drinking; D001794:Blood Pressure; D015992:Body Mass Index; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004358:Drug Therapy / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005387:Finland / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D010807:Physical Endurance; D015995:Prevalence; D012907:Smoking; D013177:Sports; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires