21 Dec Cholesterol expert urges workplace exercise support

By: Julia Rampen
Source: https://www.wsandb.co.uk

A study published in The Lancet found highly fit people suffering from dyslipidaemia – abnormal levels of harmful blood fats or cholesterol – who did not take statins were roughly half as likely to die over a ten year period as those who did take the medicine, but were unfit.

The US-based research was conducted by Veterans Affairs Medical Center Professor Peter Kokkinos’ team.

Kokkinos said: “Individuals with dyslipidaemia should improve their fitness to at least a moderate level. Treatment with statins is important, but better fitness improves survival significantly and is a valuable additional treatment or an alternative when statins cannot be taken.”

Employers should promote 20-30 minutes a day for physical activity, he added. “After all, we allow people to go out and smoke several times a day.”

The researchers assessed the records of over 10,000 US veterans with dyslipidaemia for levels of exercise and their use of statins or otherwise.

The study comes after UCL researchers suggested workers who had busy jobs but little control over how their work was managed were 23% more likely to suffer a heart attack.