Football reduces risk of Heart Diseases, Diabetes

Most of you love watching football ….right?

When the football fever takes over, people are just glued to their television sets.

Why not experience the benefits of playing the game rather than just watching it.

What does playing football exactly do?

When you play football, there is a whole array of movements taking place such as kicks, twists, turns and sprints. These movements give you an all- round body exercise and is good for your long term fitness goals. It also burns excessive fat in the body.

Who knows football may one day be prescribed by doctors to those suffering with high blood pressure or likely to develop heart diseases!

Thus, football training is becoming the favourite of health and fitness professionals as it not only helps in losing weight but also improving the overall health.

Plan your footie session in between meals as it will help you in reducing irregular snacking, and will also maintain your metabolism to burn more calories.

Do you have any reason not to play even in your middle age?

According to a recent study long-term recreational football training can improve the health of even 63-75 year old and untrained men. This further reduces the risk of developing heart diseases and diabetes.

“The improvements contribute significantly to reducing the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases and diabetes,” said lead researcher Thomas Rostgaard Andersen from Copenhagen University’s department of nutrition, exercise and sports.

The study was published in the international journal PLOS ONE.

How was the study conducted?

The study was conducted for over a year. Both the immediate effects of the training and its long-term benefits were examined.  All the participants completed their full year of training and it was observed that those participants kept playing football even 2 years after the training was completed.

Results of the study

After 4 months of training the cardiovascular fitness scores of all the participants was improved by 15%. The interval work capacity increased by 43% and the functional capacity by 30.

Isn’t it amazing!

The study also revealed that there was a 3% reduction in BMI after the year. The ability of the participants to control their blood sugar levels increased.

“In this study we saw how the participants reduced their body weight without losing muscle mass”, added another researcher Jens Bangsbo.

“Similar changes are typically observed after periods of strength training, and this underlines the fact that recreational football is an effective alternative to the training that is normally carried out to preserve muscle mass in older people. And football training is also sociable and fun, which motivate and keep inactive people exercising,” Bangsbo added.

Football controls Type 2 Diabetes

Play football if you want to control Type 2 diabetes and keep your heart in good shape.

Playing the game produces important changes in the body composition and glycaemic control in people suffering with Type 2 diabetes. It also maintains the blood pressure in men who suffer with the problem of high BP.

Further, after the constant football sessions, men with Type 2 diabetes lost 12 % of their abdominal fat and reduced blood sugar by 20% compared to their inactive counterparts.

“We found that football training in men with type 2 diabetes significantly reduced abdominal fat and improved glycaemic control, which is essential for managing diabetes and preventing diabetic complications,” said Bangsbo.

These positive effects of playing football reduce the risk of heart diseases including heart failure and myocardial infarction.

So if you are not the one who wants to hit the gym but wants to lose weight and improve the overall health and fitness of your body – it’s time to team up with your friends and hit the local pitch and start kicking!

Your health and fitness goals will go in the right direction.

Football can be enjoyed by anyone and everyone.  Give it a go and enjoy a healthy life!