World Cup matches have provided ample research on the link between sporting events and heart attacks, including data on Spanish fans who experienced higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol while watching their team play in the 2010 World Cup final against the Netherlands.
During the 2006 World Cup in Germany, researchers studied the relationships between emotional stress and cardiovascular events. They started by tracking heart events in 4,279 patients in the greater Munich area, which included cases that occurred on match days when the German team was playing, as well as cases that occurred over several months-long control periods when no soccer was played.
They found that, overall, viewing a stressful soccer match more than doubles the risk of an acute cardiovascular event. The risk was greater for men, who were 3.3 times as likely to have a heart event on a match day than at other times. For women’s sports fans, the risk was 1.82 times higher.
The riskiest time for a heart event during the World Cup was during the first two hours after the beginning of each match. The risk was especially concerning for sports fans with known heart disease. When researchers studied all coronary events that occurred on days the German team played, the proportion with known coronary heart disease was 47 percent, compared to 29 percent during the control period.
A case study of a 52-year-old Japanese sports fan, who developed chest pain while watching a live stream of the Japan vs. Belgium match during the 2018 World Cup in Russia, shows just how stressful sports can be on the heart. According to the report, the man’s chest symptoms “occurred immediately after Belgium scored a goal and tied the game at 2-2 in the 74th minute.” Fortunately, he recovered, but his doctors advised him not to watch the live final.
There’s plenty of evidence that American sports fans are at risk, too. Studies show that on Super Bowl Sunday, heavy drinking surges. Other research found a strong relationship between unhealthy eating habits and whether a favorite team won. The study showed that on the Mondays following Sunday National Football League games, saturated fat and overall calorie intake increased significantly in cities with losing teams — the researchers called it “vicarious losing.” But overall calories and consumption of fatty foods went down in cities with winning teams, and remained the same in cities with no team or one that didn’t play. The researchers found similar results when measuring food consumption of French soccer fans.
The bottom line: If you’re a sports fan, be careful! All that heavy drinking, eating of fatty foods and high stress during game play can take a toll on your health. If you find yourself getting too stressed, walk the dog, hug a friend, or do some jumping jacks. Watch what you eat and drink, and enjoy the game!
And you can enjoy all of The Washington Post’s coverage of the tournament, which resumes Friday. And don’t just watch the players — watch the refs, too. To learn more, read Kelyn Soong’s story “Here’s what it takes to be a World Cup referee.”
What does an ideal body look like? Not this.
If you haven’t checked out The Post’s “Built and Broken” series on the perils of professional body building, this latest story is a good place to start. It’s a fascinating interactive that explores what body builders do to their bodies and their brains. One surprising lesson from the story: Body builders often aren’t as strong as they look. From the story:
“Although bodybuilders spend years lifting weights and honing each muscle, they don’t need to demonstrate strength for the judges beyond the ability to hold poses onstage.
“They only need to look strong.
“Some competitors — and a growing legion of young, mostly male admirers — chase that look by diving into a reckless pharmacological game of whack-a-mole that insiders say has grown more intense and dangerous as sheer size has trumped the ‘Greek god’ ideal of previous generations.
“They stack various steroids and other muscle-building drugs, then add in compounds intended to burn fat, blunt appetite or sap water from below the skin. They might counteract the worst side effects with another arsenal of medications, vitamins and supplements.
“The result can be outlandish physiques that appear indestructible but are often quite fragile.”
Read the latest installment (and make sure you scroll through the whole thing to see all the cool interactive graphics and images.)
Tell The Post: What’s a Well+Being goal you achieved this year?
The Washington Post’s Well+Being team wants to hear about the goals you achieved this year, plus any tips or tricks that helped you along the way. What was key to your success? Please take a moment to fill out our form, and a reporter may follow up with you about your response.
It’s been another busy week! Here are some more stories you don’t want to miss.
Brain Matters: 7 books about the brain that will delight, inspire and make you think: From books about the beauty and intricacies of the brain to ones that explore the neuroscience of autism and individuality, these are great to read and gift.
Face masks may return amid holiday ‘tripledemic’ of covid, flu and RSV: Masks this time aren’t just about avoiding the coronavirus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director and other experts are advising masks to also protect against influenza and RSV.
TikTok ‘Liver King’ touted raw organ meat diet. He also took steroids.: Brian Johnson gained millions of followers promoting misleading claims about what is known as the “ancestral diet.”
Eating Lab: Why you don’t need to drink 8 cups of water a day: Age, body size, climate, activity level and lifestyle all influence how much water your body really needs.
Weighted blankets may boost melatonin, a sleep hormone, study shows: Gentle pressure from the weighted blanket may account for the rise in melatonin.
Ask a Doctor: Are salads actually good for you?: To build a better salad, you want ingredients that add fiber, nutrients and antioxidants, protein and healthy fats.
Please let us know how we are doing. Email me at wellbeing@washpost.com.
