In the News - June 2008
Jump into the water for health!
MURFREESBORO, Ark. - Drinking plenty of water is an essential element to
staying healthy in the hot summer months. Robbie McKinnon, Pike County extension
agent with the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture, says being in the
water should be another.
"The simple act of immersing yourself may be the best medicine out there,"
McKinnon said. "You even burn more calories simply standing in water. Add
exercise to the mix, and you've got a recipe for healing."
The simple act of being in the water for at least 20 minutes has several
benefits, including:
- Lowered blood pressure
- Reduced stress hormones
- Strengthened respiration muscles
- Enhanced cardiovascular efficiency
- Improved kidney function
- Decreased swelling
- Increased muscle blood circulation
- Offloaded joints
- Increased circulation to joints
"Water compresses the body; it pushes blood into the deep vessels during
immersion," McKinnon said. "Muscle circulation then improves, and there's a
consequent increase in oxygen delivery, which is useful for muscle healing or
recovering from exercise."
With neck-deep immersion, nearly three-quarters of a quart of blood is
displaced. Two-thirds goes into large pulmonary vessels and one-third goes into
the heart. Because of the extra volume, the heart increases the amount of blood
propelled with each beat, called stroke volume, approximately 30 percent.
During immersion, up to 250 percent more oxygen-rich blood is pushed into
deep muscle tissues. The heart also grows in size, improving cardiac output and
overall heart health.
"Even at rest, during neck-depth immersion, the heart is performing just as
it would during exercise on land," McKinnon said.
The advantages of water immersion can be seen in therapies of heart failure
patients, stress patients, respiratory illness patients, osteoporosis patients
and athletes. The combined effects of all the properties of water, from buoyancy
through hydrostatic pressure to its thermal conductive properties, make the
aquatic environment tremendously useful for effective health recovery and
maintenance and recreation.
"In other words, spend the summer in the lake," McKinnon said.
The Cooperative Extension Service is part of the U of A Division of
Agriculture.
June 6, 2008
Media Contact: Lamar James
Extension Communications Specialist
U of A Division of Agriculture
Cooperative Extension Service
(501) 671-2187 or (501) 753-0207
ljames@uaex.edu
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