Forty-minute exercise covering four kilometres is recommended for maintaining good cardiac health among healthy people. If someone has suffered a cardiac event recently, they should not try to reach that level immediately but can start slowly and reach that point over four to six weeks.

The recent cardiac arrest of renowned standup comedian Raju Srivastava while exercising in a Delhi gym has once again brought to the fore the importance of maintaining a healthy heart and the role of over-exercise on heart health.

Experts say that seeking the advice of a cardiologist can go a long way in ensuring a healthy heart among younger people.

Drug Today Medical Times spoke to Dr Vanita Arora, Senior Consultant Cardiac Electrophysiologist and Interventional Cardiologist at Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals about the rising incidences of heart attacks in youngsters, coronary heart diseases and precautions they should take while exercising.

DTMT: How do you see Raju Srivastava’s case when he collapsed while exercising?

Dr Arora: It was shocking to learn that Raju Srivastava had collapsed while exercising on a treadmill. However, there is a growing trend in such incidences among youngsters who over-exercise in their quest to display a well-built body in a short period.

I would advise youngsters that whenever they go for a workout in the gym, they should first seek guidance from a cardiologist.

What we must realise is that working out on treadmills in gyms is unsupervised, as they are not attached to ECG machines due to which, one cannot know if any changes in the functioning of the heart may occur while exercising.

DTMT: How much exercise is considered to be enough?

Dr Arora: Regarding how much exercise a person should do, I would like to divide it into two groups. First, those who remain at risk of suffering from cardiac issues and second, those who do not have such issues.

Forty-minute exercise covering four kilometres is recommended for maintaining good cardiac health among healthy people. If someone has suffered a cardiac event recently, they should not try to reach that level immediately but can start slowly and reach that point over four to six weeks.

Exercising beyond 40 minutes can bring about added benefits and may help to reduce weight while maintaining good cardiac health.

My advice will be that if people are going to start any exercise, they should do monitored exercise and after taking opinion from a doctor.

In fact, over the past few years, I have come across many cases where people from younger age groups have come to me for cardiac arrests and going to gyms was the common factor among them.

DTMT: Many youngsters who go to gyms regularly also take various nutritional supplements; what is your opinion on the matter?

Dr Arora: In gyms, youngsters are often advised to take protein-rich supplements and other energy enhancers so that they do not get tired early. What we do not know is if they are natural or not! Moreover, they are often advised to take anabolic steroids, which harm the body in several ways. If you ask me, it is a big no and I would not recommend them at all! Instead, I would advise them to use natural proteins. Any type of artificial protein, medicine both oral as well as injectable is harmful to cardiac health and the body as a whole.

DTMT: What should one eat for good cardiac health?

Dr Arora:  Our lifestyle has completely changed due to rapid urbanisation and corporatisation over the past few decades. There is so much stress in our day-to-day activities, which, along with an increase in incidences of smoking among young people, affects health in general and the heart in particular.

Another issue is that more and more people are eating outside food and homemade food is less preferred, which is the safest and the best. Often my patients ask me about which oil one should use in food. To that, my answer is that one can use any oil, as long as they reduce the quantity, and that can be ensured only when people eat homemade food.

Also, we must remember that India has become the diabetic capital of the world. Stress, high incidence of smoking and poor food habits are common risk factors for rising heart attacks in youngsters.

DTMT: What are the major risk factors for heart attacks?

Dr Arora: Being an Indian male and having a family history of cardiovascular diseases constitute the prime risk factors for heart attacks.

Uncontrolled blood pressure is one of the major risk factors for heart attacks. People generally make the mistake that they stop taking the medicines prescribed to them for controlling blood pressure once the blood pressure becomes manageable without realising that it is the medicine that has helped them to achieve it. Uncontrolled blood pressure can cause the blood vessels to rupture and precipitate into a life-threatening condition