Research
Mixed
Physical activity reduces coronary heart disease risk even in men with multiple existing coronary risk factors (such as smoking, hypertension, diabetes, or high BMI).
Even if you have high blood pressure, diabetes, or other risk factors, staying physically active (at least 1,000 calories worth of activity per week) significantly lowers your heart disease risk compared to being inactive. Exercise helps counteract the negative effects of these other risk factors.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Finally, among men with multiple coronary risk factors, those expending $4200 kJ/wk had reduced CHD risk compared with men expending ,4200 kJ/wk.
Why this rating
Large sample size allows for subgroup analysis, though case counts for specific single risk factors were limited.
Source
Physical Activity and Coronary Heart Disease in Men
Howard D. Sesso et al. · Circulation · 2000
DOI 10.1161/01.cir.102.9.975
cohort · n=12516Cited 631×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Engaging in total physical activity of at least 4200 kJ/wk (approx. 1000 kcal/wk) reduces the risk of coronary heart disease by approximately 20% in middle-aged and older men, with the strongest risk reductions associated with vigorous-intensity activities.Good
- Vigorous physical activity (≥6 METs) is independently associated with a reduced risk of coronary heart disease, whereas the benefits of moderate and light activities are less clear or non-significant in multivariate models.Good
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