Welcome to The Deep science and technology column where we cover topics from the deep sea to deep space and beyond. Visit our website at www.thedeepradioshow.com
You’ve probably noticed I spend a lot of time in this column warning you of various dangers. I talk about the dangers of various drugs, unhealthy lifestyles and have even devoted a whole column to the odds of what will kill you. I also talk about the various problems associated with living on a tropical island situated right in the middle of the Ring of Fire. It can get pretty depressing. So today, I decided to feature a couple of dangers to your health that YOU do NOT have to worry about (at least if you’re reading this column in the Marianas Islands!)
The days are growing shorter, but that’s our only indication here that winter is approaching. Not so in much of the mainland US, where they’re staring snow right in the face. Urban legend warns us that shoveling snow causes heart attacks, and the legend seems all too accurate, especially for male shovelers, but until recently this risk was in the realm of urban legend.
Two cardiology associations include snow-shoveling on their websites as a high-risk physical activity, but all the citation references are based on one or two incidents. So researchers at Queen's School of Medicine and Kingston General Hospital reviewed patient records from the two previous winter seasons and discovered that of the 500 patients who came to the hospital with heart problems during this period, 7% (35 patients) had started experiencing symptoms while shoveling snow. This is a statistically significant number especially if some patients didn’t report they were shoveling snow around the time the episode occurred. The researchers say the percentage could easily double.
The team also identified three main factors that put individuals at a high risk when shoveling snow. The number one factor was gender (31 of the 35 patients were male), the second was a family history of premature coronary artery disease (20 of the 35 patients), and the third was smoking (16 out of 35 patients). A history of regularly taking four or more cardiac medications was found to be preventative.
I suspect if you reviewed the statistics at GMH or Naval Hospital, NONE of the patients with heart problems would say that they’d been shoveling snow when the symptoms occurred. Whew! One thing we DON’T have to worry about!
And here’s another. In a couple of weeks (4 November to be exact), daylight saving time will end in mainland US. And researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham say the time change apparently isn’t good for your health. Strangely enough, moving the clocks ahead one hour in March is associated with a 10% increase in the risk of having a heart attack, but the opposite is true when the clocks ‘fall back’ next month when the risk decreases by about 10%.
The heart attack risk in spring peaks on Monday after the time switch when most people rise earlier to go to work. Scientists don’t know exactly why it happens but there are several theories like sleep deprivation, the adjustments made by the body's circadian clock and immune responses. They all come into play when considering the reasons why changing the time by an hour can be detrimental to someone's health.
Daylight saving time? What daylight saving time? Of course, here in Paradise, there’s always the possibility of jet lag!
Cruise on over to the Deep Website at www.thedeepradioshow.com to learn more about risks we don’t take and many other topics. Enjoy!
