3 . Yoga is a discipline I’ve long been a fan of, and I practise sun salutations (拜日式) several times a week. I know it does me good and now I have to add another benefit — it could be a life saver for people recovering from a heart attack.

I’m not at all surprised to learn that an Indian study of almost 2,500 people recovering from heart surgery found breathing exercises and stretching boosted circulation and strengthened the heart Furthermore, the researchers claimed a three-month programme of yoga while recovering from surgery after a heart attack resulted in a lower risk of being bit by another.

Better sill, people who did a daily hour of breathing exercises and gentle movement were about 16% less likely to die over the next five years. Why? Tests showed participants’ hearts were pumping blood around the body more efficiently.

Lead researcher Professor Naresh Sen, from Jaipur, said, “Patients undertook three months of a Dew daily one-hour programme specifically designed for patients who have heart diseases, combining yoga with meditation in the morning, and a pattern of breathing exercises, comprising slow and fast breathing elements in the evening. Yoga and breathing exercises may reduce metabolic (新陈代谢的) stress, reduce oxygen demand and prevent ventricular remodelling (damage to the heart).”

Yoga performed well given tat the trial involved patients who bad suffered the most serious type of heart attack, where one of the major arteries is blocked. All bad undergone surgery to widen the vessels, using a stent (支架) to allow blood to flow more freely. Half the patients were then put on a three-month programme of yoga Over the next five years, the patients in the yoga group were 16% less likely to die. There was an unexpected bonus too, heart performance was improved, with an 1I% boost to its ability to pump blood round the body. Those who didn’t do yoga saw an increase of only 4%.

Scientists have found that even adding just an additional 500 steps each day brings significant health benefits in later life,     1     (cut) the risk of a stroke and heart problems.

The new study analysed health data for 452 people     2     used an accelerometer device similar to a pedometer, worn at the hip (臀部),     3     (measure) their daily step count.

    4     (compare) to adults who took fewer than 2,000 steps per-day, people who took about 4,500 were 77 per centless likely to experience a cardiovascular (心血管) event in the 3.5 years follow-up. It means that every additional 500     5     (step) lowered the risk of heart issues by 14 per cent.

“We were surprised to find that every additional quarter of a mile, or 500 steps, of walking had such a strong benefit     6     heart health,” said Dr Erin Dooley, an     7     (assist) professor of epidemiology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health.

More up-to-date research     8     (find) that health effects can be steady after 4,500 steps, while others suggest between 6,000 and 8,000 is the sweet spot for fighting chronic illness like heart problems and cancer. “Steps are an easy way to measure physical activity, and more daily steps were associated with a     9     (low) risk of having a cardiovascular disease-related event in older adults,” added Dr Dooley, the lead author of the study. “    10    , most studies have focused on early-to-midlife adults with daily goals of 10,000 or more steps, which may not be available for older individuals.”