Research

Hormonal

Moderate physical exercise improves endothelial function and reduces cardiovascular risk, whereas prolonged strenuous exercise may limit nitric oxide production.

Engage in moderate intensity aerobic exercise regularly to improve your heart health. This type of exercise improves endothelial function and reduces cardiovascular risk. Avoid prolonged strenuous exercise, as it may generate excessive free radicals and limit nitric oxide production, potentially negating some benefits.

GoodQualifiesHIGH confidence
Clinical studies have shown that severe physical exercise can lead to the generation of more free radicals than the endogenous antioxidant systems can scavenge, whereas moderate intensity aerobic exercise improves endothelial function and reduces cardiovascular risk... In contrast, prolonged strenuous exercise and high blood pressure reduce the cyclic pulsations (physiological shear stress), thereby limiting NO production.
L IGNARRO et al. · Cardiovascular Research · 2006

Why this rating

Supported by clinical studies and mechanistic explanations.

Source

Nutrition, physical activity, and cardiovascular disease: An update

L IGNARRO et al. · Cardiovascular Research · 2006

DOI 10.1016/j.cardiores.2006.06.030

narrative_reviewCited 442×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

This is one finding among thousands. Every one is graded and traced to its source, so you can see what the evidence actually supports. Browse the research →