New York, Nov 5 (IANS) As we grow old our heart not only becomes weak but also loses pumping capacity, according to a new study that defines precisely why age is a risk factor for heart failure.
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine studied a large group of people in the age group 45 to 84 from different ethnic backgrounds and with no existing symptoms of heart disease.
They analysed more than a half-dozen measurements of heart structure and pumping function to assess minute changes in the hearts of the participants, reported science portal EurekAlert.
“Our results demonstrate just how the heart plays a losing game of catch-up as people age,” said Susan Cheng, who led the study.
“We already knew that the heart is constantly trying to adapt to risk factors, but now we know that this task gets more difficult as the heart ages and loses a little bit of its pumping capacity every year.”