How can a marathon kill you

That explains why in the study, most of the marathoners who had heart attacks were not first-time runners, but accomplished racers who presumably had trained well and prepared their bodies for the grueling long-distance run.

In one study , troponin levels of runners immediately after their race were alarmingly high, but the boost was temporary, and the enzyme went back to normal levels three months later. Whether or not those participants had some underlying heart weaknesses is not clear, but Baggish notes that these heart conditions are relatively rare, and that for most people, the benefits of exercise, including marathons, outweigh the risks.

Determining whether you have a potentially hazardous heart condition should become an important part of preparing for long-distance running, he says, and anyone considering running in a marathon should start with a visit to his doctor. I focus here on a somewhat controversial disorder in exercise physiology, hypertropic obstructive cardiomyopathy.

While we do not know the cause of death in Mr. Alfon and Major Lubang, they were both in the general age range—38 and 40, respectively—where such rare deaths occur. From the States, we send our deepest condolences to the Alfon and Lubang families and to all involved in the Condura Hero Foundation fundraiser.

You've likely read the sad news from this weekend in the world of distance running: Three relatively young men died on Sunday while running in otherwise festive, long-distance races in London and Raleigh, North Carolina.

At the 34th London Marathon, where 36, runners participated on Sunday, the post-race death of a year-old man was the event's second death in three years. In North Carolina, two men died , age 31 and 35, after collapsing at or near the end of the A combined 12, runners participated in the Raleigh events. A pharmacology colleague and science writer, Bethany Brookshire, has a firsthand account and personal reflections from running the Raleigh Half Marathon.

While specific details beyond the runners' age and gender are not yet available, general reports on the three cases bear the hallmarks of sudden cardiac death. Each person collapsed late or at the end of the races and on-site resuscitation attempts were as prompt and aggressive as possible. But all three gentlemen were pronounced dead at the hospitals where they were taken. Sudden death while running long distance races is rare phenomenon but is appearing to be more common due to the sheer number of runners participating across a racing calendar that continues to expand the Raleigh race was the inaugural event there.

While research shows that air temperature and race preparation are most likely to predict the best marathon finish times, sudden cardiac death is most often due to existing cardiovascular disease that is largely unrelated to the extent of physical conditioning.

In many of these cases, the victims never had any previous problems or symptoms. Sudden deaths in marathon running have been the subject of much study in the cardiology and sports medicine fields because they are rare and somewhat unpredictable occurrences. Research estimates range from 0. Dan Tunstall Pedoe, the London Marathon's Medical Director from to , wrote in the journal, Sports Medicine , that an increase in marathon popularity as one contributor to the apparent increase in long-distance racing deaths.

Pedoe examined the records of documented sudden deaths across , marathon completions during that time, concluding that such risk in the London Marathon was 1 in 80, finishers. That's not far removed from London's two deaths in the last three years across about , runners although the death of year-old Claire Squiers has been primarily attributed to her use of a sports supplement containing the amphetamine-like drug, DMAA. These rare, tragic events deal a crushing blow to family members and the larger community, in part because even recreational marathoners are widely considered to be at their peak of physical conditioning.

But is there any way that sudden cardiac deaths in people under 40 or so could be prevented by detecting heart problems in advance? In older individuals, atherosclerosis or coronary artery disease is most often the cause of sudden death during athletic events but these situations will sometimes cause symptoms during training.

McCullough, M. The heart becomes abnormally thick in one area and when the heart pumps, it has trouble ejecting blood past that thick point. The heart becomes very, very thick — two to three times as thick as normal," said Dr.

But the chances of it doing so are about 1 in , And 1 in 7, previously healthy middle-aged recreational runners meet their end while out for a jog. As you can see, these statistics strongly suggest that running a marathon or half-marathon is actually less risky than many other vigorous physical activities.

Vigorous physical activities like long-distance running carry countless benefits for your body and mind. Do they also carry a small risk of sudden death? And if you want to make that risk even smaller, choose a race that has big crowds. Guest Blog Post Series by Andy Richardson — Andy is a fellow blogger who will be using my ebook to train for his first marathon this November.

He will be sharing his insights with us here on the MTA blog. Understandably, their urging him not to run a marathon were a result of their lack of knowledge combined with concern for his well-being. The irony: the conversation occurred in a bar while some of the skeptics had cigarettes in hand. Keep the great podcasts coming Trevor and Angie!

Hi Andrea. Since I started running and training for a Marathon. I have talked to two doctors. Both have said the benefits far, far, far outweigh the drawbacks. I have had some folks caution me to the point of discouragement. I finally asked them to stop warning me. I was aware of the risks, but I was going forth anyway.

I thanked them for their concern and let them know that I had sought medical advice and was given a green light. Good point Ben. It can be very destructive, cause chronic inflammation maybe this is what causes the plaque , and the only PHYSICAL not mental positive may be that you can run for a greater length of time if a mugger or a handicapped lion is chasing you.

I took up weightlfting, gained 40 pounds mostly muscle-my waist size did NOT increase , and look younger now 10 yrs later than I did when I was running. But if you weightlift everday,for too long, you will encounter the same problem as training for marathons daily…too much stress on the body, and you shrink-not grow- and possibly occlude your arteries as well…just my opinion.

Thanks for sharing your perspective Paul. The key is to find a balance between being cardiovascularly fit as well as maintaining strength, balance, endurance, flexibility, and taking recovery time.