Forget the myth, sex doesn`t cause a heart attack

Despite the popular myth, sex doesn`t increase the chances of a heart attack, even if you`re recovering from one.

Sex is no more strenuous than climbing two flights of stairs, moderate physical exercise or taking a brisk walk, say researchers at Ulm University in Germany.

In a questionnaire to 536 heart disease patients, only 0.7 per cent said they had had sex an hour before their heart attack, while 78 per cent reported that they had not had sex at least 24 hours before the attack.

Overall, nearly 15 per cent said they had had no sexual activity in the 12 months before their heart attack, and just 55 per cent said they had sex once or more times a week in the year prior.

It seems very unlikely that sexual activity is a trigger of heart attack, said lead researcher Dietrich Rothenbacher.

(Source: Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 2015; 66: 1516)

What do you think? Start a conversation over on the... WDDTY Community