10 ms·

Snow shovelling can kill

126 points by pedro84 9y ago

nicolashahn 9y ago
My takeaways: show shovelling can cause heart attacks because of the type of exertion you're doing + the cold weather, and it's much more likely in men because presumably more men than women shovel snow.
- Johnny555 9y ago
  it's much more likely in men because presumably more men than women shovel snow. The article said that's a suspicion, but is not a conclusion: The researchers say they suspect that shovelling caused heart attacks because men are more likely than women to shovel snow. That may be true, or it might be a sexist assumption. But there may be another explanation for the findings: that women shovel snow in a way that doesn't cause heart attacks.
  - nicolashahn 9y ago
    Hence my "presumably." I'd be surprised if that wasn't true, however.
  - mhb 9y ago
    Yeah, but it seems a lot more reasonable to suspect that women don't have a unique way of shoveling snow. The author also said To be perfectly scientific, the researchers have no way of knowing know that shovelling [sic] did the guys in. So I guess you can discount the whole thing.
    - Johnny555 9y ago
      While this is just anecdotal, My wife and I have a very different style -- in heavy wet snow, I take a full shovel load before tossing it, while she takes much smaller shovel loads. This is probably a factor of me being larger and stronger than her, but it may also be a safer shoveling style for her to follow.
      - Paul-ish 9y ago
        Especially if it is the valsalva this is the problem. Large loads of snow means bigger effort, means you are more likely to valsalva.
      - michaelt 9y ago
        I think men are also more likely to have internalised a self-image about "manning up" and pushing on when their body is telling them to stop. Or at least, every time I've seen someone staggering under the weight of a pile of chairs they can barely lift or carrying ten bags of shopping from the car in one trip, it's been a man :)
      - astura 9y ago
        Yeah, I'm really baffled by people describing shovelling snow as such a strenuous task. Since HN is mostly men I can assume that these posters are more likely than not men. I'm an out of shape woman and I don't think it's really all that difficult or taxing on my body to shovel snow. I don't mind the physical work but the time consumption is so annoying.
  - freehunter 9y ago
    Isn't "all women are naturally and inherently better at shoveling snow" just as sexist of an assumption as "women aren't as likely to shovel snow"? If men are more likely to shovel snow, that's just statistics and sample sizes and can be controlled for to determine its validity. If all women everywhere are so much better at shoveling than men that it produces a statistically measurable outcome in an unrelated study, that is massively huge news about the innate physical differences between genders.
    - Broken_Hippo 9y ago
      This isn't a case of better or worse at shoveling snow, though. I mean, it could be, but that's not what this implies. It simply states that maybe women shovel in a way that doesn't lead to heart attacks so easily, which wouldn't be that far into fantasy. It isn't the first time we've noticed such things. For example, "throwing like a girl" is a thing for most girls, caused by the way the body is put together after puberty (before puberty, males and females throw similarly). There are some exercises that are great for men but not women - it makes the pelvic bone get weird for some women (can't remember the specifics. Its been 20 years). Considering all this, it is quite possible that women naturally use different movements and different muscle groups to do the same job because of their physical differences. And perhaps this causes less strain. Or maybe it is hormones. You know, or maybe more men shovel than women - they just didn't want to rest on such an assumption when they don't know it to be true.
__s 9y ago
Friend of my parents had this happen (& hey, we're in Canada) Guy shovelled, went inside, had a shower, passed out in bed. Had to be rushed to hospital, bedridden for a couple days. Survived, but now his wife's a bit worrisome about him shovelling now
- colanderman 9y ago
  Pure speculation but I wonder if that was caused by the rapid shift in environmental temperature resulting in rapid blood vessel dilation? [1] Or do you know it was a heart attack and not fainting? [1] https://answers.webmd.com/answers/5038612/why-do-i-faint-or-nearly-faint-after-taking-a-shower https://answers.webmd.com/answers/5038612/why-do-i-faint-or-...
bovermyer 9y ago
So basically I have a medical reason not to shovel snow. I'm OK with this.
munchbunny 9y ago
Sounds like one theory of the actual mechanism is the Valsalva maneuver? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valsalva_maneuver https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valsalva_maneuver Could that be mitigated by just learning to not do it? People training in martial arts often practice this by combining breathing with specific moves, such as exhaling while punching. I imagine you could also learn to exhale as you lift the shovel.
- svalorzen 9y ago
  Not doing the Valsalva maneuver means that you break your spine. It works by using the compressed air inside your lungs as support so that your abdominal and back muscles can do their work. This is the reason that when you go to a physiotherapist and they crack your spine they ask you to exhale before, in order to be able to work without needing to fight your internal pressure. There is a reason we evolved with the instinct to do it. Edit: to also comment on your note about martial arts: the very short scream you do when throwing a punch or kick is precisely a way to induce a Valsalva maneuver. Notice that you don't scream until you're out of breath, but you exhale very fast and you stop precisely when you hit, forcing pressure inside you to give you the support to need during the transfer of forces of the blow.
  - Paul-ish 9y ago
    > Not doing the Valsalva maneuver means that you break your spine. This is only anecdote, but if I fail to do the valsalva when exercising I just don't have as much power. I haven't broken my back yet. The valsalva is useful at max effort, but doesn't seem necessary for a sustained activity such as shoveling snow. If they find valsalva is a problem, the answer may be not to shovel so much snow in one push.
    - svalorzen 9y ago
      You don't have as much power because your body automatically scales down to prevent you from injuring yourself. In addition, performing an exercise wrong doesn't mean that you automatically get injured, just that your chances of hurting yourself go up. If you're lucky, you're never going to break anything - this also depends on the kind of exercise you're doing and on its intensity. As for the max-effort thing, the Valsalva maneuver can be performed at different degrees of intensity. It's not like every time you do it you have veins popping in your eyeballs, and I don't expect those untrained men referenced in the article to do it very strongly. It is correlated with the effort you're doing and on how much you're consciously compressing the air. But yes, longer effort with less snow per shovel would definitely help.
bluedino 9y ago
Snow shoveling for me has always caused insane lower back pain. I have a bad back and have been laid up in bed for days because of it, even doing silly things like bending over to pick something small up. I used that as an excuse to buy a snowblower. Now, removing snow is as easy as using a self-propelled lawnmower. It's one of those things I didn't realize I was missing out on and wish I had bought years ago.
- sjg007 9y ago
  Yep, people should hire someone or buy a snow blower. Or if you have too long of a drive get a plow.
joe_the_user 9y ago
The context is that many people pick up a shovel and do maximum effort despite living a sedentary life. The alternative argument would be that this kind of exercise is simply bad for a person, especially a men over 50 - that it should be avoided even by those otherwise in "good shape". And yet a third possibility is that this kind of exercise is that this sort of exercise merely moves forward the occurrence of a heart disease event that would have otherwise occurred reasonably soon otherwise. Anyone know any studies puzzling these possibilities out.
- whalesalad 9y ago
  I know so many men over 50 through the crossfit community that are in killer shape. Age has absolutely nothing to do with it. The fact of the matter is that most individuals are completely out of shape. Maximum effort should not be a seasonal chore around the house.
  - carbocation 9y ago
    Age has quite a bit to do with it. You rarely see acute myocardial infarction in 15 year olds, and you often see it in 80 year olds. There is a continuum of risk, and age plays a role. Because there are risk factors that are uncorrelated or imperfectly correlated with physical fitness and its outward manifestations, even physically fit individuals cannot escape this.
    - whalesalad 9y ago
      For those reading, acute myocardial infarction is the scientific word for heart attack. Not sure why that needed to be used in this context. Second... if take a 15 year old who is out of shape and an 80 year old who is out of shape and have them shovel equal length driveways ... sure my money is on the 15 year old. But... you can't say that this problem is due to people being older. 30 year old folks can still have heart attacks shoveling snow. There are loads of folks out there who are in their 40s and 50s who won't experience any medical issues with the exertion required to shovel a driveway. So the point I was trying to illustrate is that it's not fair to blame age. Age is one variable in a very complex equation that influences your level of fitness.
ilamont 9y ago
My cousin died in his late 30s while attempting to pull-start a chain saw in very cold conditions. The explanation I heard was arteries and vessels constrict in extreme cold, and combined with exertion triggered the heart attack.
colanderman 9y ago
> The context is that many people pick up a shovel and do maximum effort despite living a sedentary life. This. Shoveling after last week's storm was definitely the most concerted exercise I've had in a year or more. I definitely felt at one point that my heart was working way too hard (for whatever physiological reason; likely those outlined in the article) and forced myself to rest a few minutes, despite not being physically exhausted. And I'm neither overweight nor have high blood pressure.
- FLUX-YOU 9y ago
  Did you do warmups before shoveling snow? I can't imagine going outside and doing that in cold weather with cold muscles.
  - colanderman 9y ago
    Nope, didn't even know this was a thing! That's why the passage I quoted rings so true to me. I lead a sedentary life all year and then one day, with no preparation whatsoever, dive headlong into strenuous exercise in adverse conditions for an hour plus.
  - choward 9y ago
    > Did you do warmups before shoveling snow? Seriously? Who does this?
    - FLUX-YOU 9y ago
      Shoveling snow is obviously exercise. Does it seem weird to you that people warm up before lifting or running?
      - choward 9y ago
        No. Neither does it to the average person. I'm just saying doing a warmup before chores is not something that's common practice. Maybe it should be, but you can't just assume it is because it seems like the right thing to do that it's common knowledge.
mikestew 9y ago
Sexist or not, I rarely see women shoveling snow. My wife will on occasion (and even less so now that we live in Seattle), but it's almost always been me because, well, I'm better built for it. But what I didn't hear mentioned is that women have a much lower risk for heart attacks until menopause. And I don't know that I've ever seen a 55 year old woman shoveling snow (again, anecdata). If you strapping young lads were raised right, you'd go down and do it for her since you already have the shovel out. :-) More so, shoveling snow is amazingly hard work on a level that most people probably rarely experience. I'm a lifelong distance runner with a healthy heart (though weeny little runner arms), and shoveling sure gets my heart going. I can't imagine the strain on a 54 year old guy with a beer gut who spends most of his day sitting. That does sound like a recipe for a heart attack.
- scooter_de 9y ago
  My wife wen't out first to shovel this morning and she's 54 :-).
- roywiggins 9y ago
  On the other hand, women who do have heart attacks do not do as well, at least partly because people assume they aren't having one. http://www.bbc.com/news/health-42590013 http://www.bbc.com/news/health-42590013
  - mikestew 9y ago
    Yeah, I almost typed "immune" before menopause, but that's not entirely accurate. And as you point out, it implies that a pre-menopausal woman having a heart attack just doesn't happen. Hell, my brother-in-law had an nearly fatal heart attack when he was 34 (bad genetics, helped along by too much drinking and smoking). Gender and number of wrinkles are just data points, but not the deciders of who's having a heart attack and who's not when their arm goes numb.
  - klipt 9y ago
    Probably the same reason that men have lower breast cancer survival rates than women - the common assumption is that it's a gender specific disease, which delays diagnosis and treatment: http://www.breastcancer.org/research-news/20120517 http://www.breastcancer.org/research-news/20120517
Red_Tarsius 9y ago
Key takeaways: > Researchers... looked at more than 128,000 patients admitted to hospital for a heart attack, and more than 68,000 heart attack deaths in Quebec between 1981 and 2014 from November to April. They also got weather information... and used it to track snowfall prior to the admission to hospital and/or death. > Among the men, a third of the heart attacks occurred the day after a snowfall. The association between shovelling and heart attack was very strong. If the snow fell for two to three days, the association between shovelling and a heart attack was even stronger. The correlation was true regardless of the patient's age, the presence or absence of cardiovascular risk like high blood pressure or other health conditions. > But here's the thing. The correlation was only true for men – not women. The researchers say they suspect that shovelling caused heart attacks because men are more likely than women to shovel snow. That may be true, or it might be a sexist assumption. But there may be another explanation for the findings: that women shovel snow in a way that doesn't cause heart attacks. > Men age 50 and older with heart disease should avoid shovelling snow period. Why is it sexist to assume that snow shoveling is mostly done by men? It sounds more plausible than secret shoveling techniques.
- viraptor 9y ago
  Sexist? The assumption itself would be slightly. But in this case assuming it would also be unscientific. And I feel that it's weird they didn't do even a quick check (walk the streets in the morning, or ask people - get a valid sample). Then they'd both have better information and avoid the weird wording.
- Dirlewanger 9y ago
  Because discussing anything gender/identity-related nowadays has become bereft of all logic and always comes with emotional baggage.
  - throwmeaway987 9y ago
    Oh does it? Does it become emotional?
  - astura 9y ago
carbocation 9y ago
Similarly, you're more likely to get a have sudden cardiac death while you're running a longer race, even if marathoners are unlikely to suffer from sudden cardiac death overall[1]. 1 = http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1106468#t=abstract http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1106468#t=abstrac... My point in mentioning this is that there are multiple lines of evidence suggesting that your risk of adverse cardiovascular outcomes is highest during peak exercise, not that I think this would be particularly controversial.
- ErikVandeWater 9y ago
  Don't exercise. Got it.
overcast 9y ago
Suit up, stay hydrated, and use a snowblower you knuckleheads.
- mikestew 9y ago
  If I still lived in Indiana, for sure I'd buy a snow blower. But I'm not taking up space in my garage for something I'll use once a year at most in the Seattle area. So I keep a snow shovel around, make sure to stay in good shape, and remind myself that going all out versus shoveling at a sustainable rate will probably at most make ten minutes worth of difference.
  - shoover 9y ago
    Oddly enough, even here in central Indiana a snowblower is only needed about once in one or two seasons. Most snows are 2" or less and handled with the shovel easier than getting the snowblower out and warmed up. But when you need it, you need it. Fortunately it fits easily under a workbench with the handle folded over when not in use.
    - mikestew 9y ago
      Oddly enough, even here in central Indiana a snowblower is only needed about once in one or two seasons. Yeah, I forgot that before we moved that it didn't seem to snow as much as it used to. Grew up spending entire winters cross-country skiing across the fields. Not so much as I got older. Wanna hear an old man's stories about the Blizzard of '78? :-)
  - quickthrower2 9y ago
    If people got on with their neighbours I am sure one snow blower between 20 houses would suffice. Maybe the 'storer' gets their share for free. Could issue an ICO token for the share, for a laugh.
  - matte_black 9y ago
    Rent it or hire a service.
djstein 9y ago
title caught my eye. thought I'd share a little anecdotal evidence: grandpa died from a heart attack while shoveling snow
whalesalad 9y ago
The real tragedy here is that folks are living such sedentary lives that a simple activity like clearing snow from your sidewalk/driveway becomes lethal. I was once a typical neckbeard programmer who drank way too much coke and red bull and lived off of unhealthy foods. I have a 180º different lifestyle now and will never go back. I enjoy shoveling my driveway. Everyone should invest in their own physical fitness. Make time for it. Make it your lifestyle so it's not a chore or a second-thought, but a regular part of your routine. At the very least, do it for your mental health.
- plopz 9y ago
  Or maybe its a good thing that society has progressed far enough that physical vitality is no longer a necessary trait for the advancement of our species.
  - whalesalad 9y ago
    No way! Your brain grows and develops when you challenge your body physically. It's established science that strenuous exercise builds new neurons in your brain.
  - jackstraw14 9y ago
    I wonder why you think that we've reached this point of progress? It seems like every day we're learning more about how consumer tech is killing us mentally, physically, and emotionally.
    - freehunter 9y ago
      He said society, not our body. For a large chunk of the population, society does not demand physical fitness. That's not the same thing as our bodily health not requiring physical fitness.
- tostitos1979 9y ago
  May I ask what age you changed your ways? I'm 38 and it feels like constant failure. I also worry the damage is done :(
0x00000000 9y ago
I wonder if there is data on this about snow sports, it seems like it should be common too. Skiing meets most of the same criteria - extreme cold, surprisingly exhausting, high altitude/low oxygen and often getting dehydrated. It is more of a sustained aerobic exercise vs. bursts of exertion though.
protomyth 9y ago
You could also skip buying the "snow shovel" that holds too much snow at a time or is shaped badly for snow removal. You are not power lifting, just clearing an area. Be slow and steady. Instead of the crap snow shovel buy a grain shovel[1], one of the snow pushers[2], or a Toro Power Shovel[3]. If you live in an area that gets a lot of snow then hire a service. 1) https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/stanley-fatmax-fiberglass-d-handle-grain-shovel?cm_vc=-10005 https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/stanley-fatmax-fib... 2) http://www.truevalue.com/product/Polar-Tuff-Snow-Plow-Pusher-38-In-/70231.uts?keyword=snow%20pusher http://www.truevalue.com/product/Polar-Tuff-Snow-Plow-Pusher... 3) https://www.toro.com/en/homeowner/snow-blowers/power-shovel-38361 https://www.toro.com/en/homeowner/snow-blowers/power-shovel-... my dad had one an it worked well
- eyepulp 9y ago
  Will second the #2 recommendation above - I have a fair amount of sidewalk in front of my house and the front of my office that I bought the snow pushers for. They're fast and move a lot of snow with minimal heavy breathing. 4 years and zero heart attacks. =)
msie 9y ago
In Vancouver, last winter, GlobalBC News made such a big deal out of people not shovelling their sidewalks. They even went so far to shame some owners. They seemed wreck-less about this issue considering that some people (like my dad who's a senior) would be risking their life shovelling the snow. Can you tell I hate the news sometimes? On some issues they really like to stir up outrage. [Edit]At one point people were talking about the issue at work over lunch. Ugh.
- astura 9y ago
  If the law says the homeowner is responsible for clearing the sidewalk in front of their property (like in my town) then your dad needs to hire someone to do the work if he can't. My neighbor is well into her 80s so she hires. It's not even all that expensive. Not being physically able to do the work yourself is no excuse for neglecting your responsibility as a homeowner. Your dad should be shamed for putting pedestrians in danger.
  - sjg007 9y ago
    Or just change the law. City could do it, jobs programs and all. You think I'm kidding but they do the streets anyway.
    - astura 9y ago
      Making a phonecall is a lot easier than changing City law Of course, they are out doing the sidewalk of city property, they have really nice machinery too.
      - sjg007 9y ago
        Yeah, it's kind of a scam that you don't own the sidewalk but they force you to maintain it.
  - msie 9y ago
    Well the only ones in danger are people visiting my Dad and he doesn't get too many visitors. Thanks for demonstrating how ridiculously judgemental people have gotten.
davidw 9y ago
If you don't shovel it, you risk having it compact into an icy mess, which can be unhealthy in its own way.
robohamburger 9y ago
Seems like an easy way to help fix this would be to require a snow blower or have the city do it. Or at the very least something in place to make it easier for someone at risk to not have to do the work themselves.
- ashark 9y ago
  Or butt garages up to the street so there's no driveway to speak of. Oh no, now I also don't have a front lawn to mow. How will I ever get over such a loss.
  - robohamburger 9y ago
    The town I lived in you were responsible for shoveling and the overall condition of the sidewalk. It was something like $200 fine for not shoveling. I imagine there are probably many cities with similar laws.
    - ashark 9y ago
      Yeah, but the sidewalk’s like 1/10 the work of the driveway, if that. Heavier the snow the bigger the difference, too, since you have to move the snow so far from the middle to reach the side of the driveway.
      - robohamburger 9y ago
        I just shovel a path up my driveway to my house so no one slips. I don't think there was a fine for driveways.
    - astura 9y ago
      The most effort is the bottom of the driveway where the snow plow packed in the snow.
  - bluedino 9y ago
    >> Or butt garages up to the street so there's no driveway to speak of. Talk about getting plowed in.
imglorp 9y ago
> To be perfectly scientific, the researchers have no way of knowing know that shovelling did the guys in. Devil's advocate - perhaps it's some other activity altogether? Just for example, being snowed in with the spouse could lead to some indoor exertion?
Camillo 9y ago
> The correlation was true regardless of the patient's age, the presence or absence of cardiovascular risk like high blood pressure or other health conditions. Perhaps we should say that a sedentary lifestyle is by itself a cardiovascular risk factor, even if it affects the majority of the population. The same thing goes for body weight: even if the majority of adults in the US are overweight, we don't redefine that as the new normal weight, for good physiological and medical reasons. Perhaps with physical activity we have already normalized an unhealthy lifestyle.
neom 9y ago
I loved that they put the word suspect in bold. I wish other publications would do this.
mmmbacn 9y ago
Cold constricts blood vessels, increasing blood pressure. Combine that with the fact that shoveling is mostly strenuous on your arm muscles —- where upper body exercise causes an increased HR and BP as compared to lower body exercise [0]. [0] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4183232/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4183232/
Shivetya 9y ago
I guess I am not a numbers guy, but in six months 68k suffer heart attacks and 60k in the other six months so its snow, for what 8k extra? yeah it can be hard work and some people just keep going regardless of when their body says stop. still I bet a lot of it is purely genetic, thresholds are higher for some in the same health than others. regardless, just some activity per day is good
steev 9y ago
I mentioned this to my wife (who is a doctor) and her response was basically "no duh." She said they learned about this in med school. Her explanation was that this is typically happening to people who rarely exercise and then all of a sudden are physically exerting themselves for a sustained period of time.
jakobegger 9y ago
So I understand that sudden exercise can cause clots to become loose and get stuck in one of your coronary arteries causing a heart attack. But those clots are there whether you exercise or not, right? So they are going to cause a heart attack at some point. So by avoiding exercise, you just delay the inevitable. Am I missing something?
- analog31 9y ago
  The mechanism is that a plaque builds up in your coronary artery. This plaque can rupture, spontaneously or if disturbed for some reason. Then your blood starts rapidly forming a clot around the location of the rupture, and this is what blocks the artery. https://www.verywell.com/stemi-st-segment-elevation-myocardial-infarction-1746032 https://www.verywell.com/stemi-st-segment-elevation-myocardi...
timothycrosley 9y ago
Does this also mean that areas that rarely get snowfall also have a lower rate of heart attacks?
justaman 9y ago
Great uncle had a heart attack at 63 while shoveling snow.
Spooky23 9y ago
The other big killer is pooping. No joke. If someone at potential risk of a heart attack seems winded or has pain, don’t let them sit on the toilet. That clenching stops your heart.
- nexys 9y ago
  What about kneeling down with the body straight?
vortico 9y ago
From the linked paper https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20825768 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20825768 >The average annual rate of snow shovel-related injuries and medical emergencies was 4.15 per 100,000 population. That's actually much more than I would have guessed, but is that still high enough for the general public, or HN readers to care enough to change their behavior (i.e. decision to shovel or not)? For comparison, car related fatalities were 11.59 per 100,000 in 2016.
- StanislavPetrov 9y ago
  > HN readers to care enough to change their behavior (i.e. decision to shovel or not)? Where I live its not an option unless you enjoy being sued. You are legally obligated to keep the sidewalks clear. If you don't, and someone "slips", you are on the hook for a massive settlement. I'd also like to point out that the 4.15 per 100,000 only counts the people who went to the doctor or hospital for their injuries. You should have no doubt that droves of people who end up with back injuries (like myself) from shoveling do not seek medical treatment and are not counted in the statistics.
StanislavPetrov 9y ago
>The context is that many people pick up a shovel and do maximum effort despite living a sedentary life. I'd like to point out that even those of us that work out regularly suffer terribly from shoveling. As someone in his mid 40s who works out regularly, daily exercise may prevent a shoveling-induced heart attack but it does absolutely nothing to prevent crippling lower-back pain that lasts for days/weeks.
jpeloquin 9y ago
Here's a quick review of the large studies which the article cites: [1] says that snowfall in Canada is correlated with heart attacks in men, but not in women. Shoveling is just a postulated cause. [2] reports the proportions of different types of snow shoveling injuries in people treated in US hospital emergency departments. I did not find any statements in [2] to support the article's statement that "of the patients with heart attack after shoveling snow, 80 per cent were men." Perhaps the article's author had access to this data or read this result elsewhere. [2] did say that 6.7% of the snow shoveling injuries were cardiac-related. 0.8% of the injuries were fatal; all fatal injuries were cardiac-related. Regarding gender as a risk factor, [2] did report that in patients age ≥ 55 years, males were twice as likely as females to have their injury be cardiac-related. This suggests that being old and male does confer extra risk of snow shoveling-related heart attack. Note that [2] cites work saying that cold temperatures alone, even absent physical exertion, are associated with heart attack in at-risk patients. Cold temperature, independent of snow shoveling, could therefore be a cause for the results in [1]. [1] http://www.cmaj.ca/content/189/6/E235 http://www.cmaj.ca/content/189/6/E235 [2] http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0735675709003714 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0735675709...
krn1p4n1c 9y ago
Get one of these: [0]: http://www.biltema.se/sv/Fritid/Tradgard/Vinter/Snoslade-2000034889/ http://www.biltema.se/sv/Fritid/Tradgard/Vinter/Snoslade-200... [1]: http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3994134 http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=39941... - in the US for moving 90% of the snow and if you have to scoop the last bit it's not backbreaking.
newswriter99 9y ago
"The notion that women might shovel snow with less risk is an intriguing one that just might make a good study." Is it really sexist to just point out the obvious answer? Women have their men go out and shovel the snow.
- astura 9y ago
  Countless times in history the "obvious answer" has been dead wrong. It's really bad science to just assume the "obvious" rather than test it. They acknowledge so.
  - newswriter99 9y ago
    To ignore the obvious and simplest hypothesis because you're afraid of being labelled politically incorrect is just as unscientific.
    - astura 9y ago
      This is such a ridiculous comment that I'm pretty sure your just trolling Nobody's ignoring it, it was assumed by the authors as the most likely reason for the disparity in the sentence before the one you quoted.

126 points by pedro84 9y ago

My takeaways: show shovelling can cause heart attacks because of the type of exertion you're doing + the cold weather, and it's much more likely in men because presumably more men than women shovel snow.

Johnny555 9y ago
it's much more likely in men because presumably more men than women shovel snow. The article said that's a suspicion, but is not a conclusion: The researchers say they suspect that shovelling caused heart attacks because men are more likely than women to shovel snow. That may be true, or it might be a sexist assumption. But there may be another explanation for the findings: that women shovel snow in a way that doesn't cause heart attacks.
- nicolashahn 9y ago
  Hence my "presumably." I'd be surprised if that wasn't true, however.
- mhb 9y ago
  Yeah, but it seems a lot more reasonable to suspect that women don't have a unique way of shoveling snow. The author also said To be perfectly scientific, the researchers have no way of knowing know that shovelling [sic] did the guys in. So I guess you can discount the whole thing.
  - Johnny555 9y ago
    While this is just anecdotal, My wife and I have a very different style -- in heavy wet snow, I take a full shovel load before tossing it, while she takes much smaller shovel loads. This is probably a factor of me being larger and stronger than her, but it may also be a safer shoveling style for her to follow.
    - Paul-ish 9y ago
      Especially if it is the valsalva this is the problem. Large loads of snow means bigger effort, means you are more likely to valsalva.
    - michaelt 9y ago
      I think men are also more likely to have internalised a self-image about "manning up" and pushing on when their body is telling them to stop. Or at least, every time I've seen someone staggering under the weight of a pile of chairs they can barely lift or carrying ten bags of shopping from the car in one trip, it's been a man :)
    - astura 9y ago
      Yeah, I'm really baffled by people describing shovelling snow as such a strenuous task. Since HN is mostly men I can assume that these posters are more likely than not men. I'm an out of shape woman and I don't think it's really all that difficult or taxing on my body to shovel snow. I don't mind the physical work but the time consumption is so annoying.
- freehunter 9y ago
  Isn't "all women are naturally and inherently better at shoveling snow" just as sexist of an assumption as "women aren't as likely to shovel snow"? If men are more likely to shovel snow, that's just statistics and sample sizes and can be controlled for to determine its validity. If all women everywhere are so much better at shoveling than men that it produces a statistically measurable outcome in an unrelated study, that is massively huge news about the innate physical differences between genders.
  - Broken_Hippo 9y ago
    This isn't a case of better or worse at shoveling snow, though. I mean, it could be, but that's not what this implies. It simply states that maybe women shovel in a way that doesn't lead to heart attacks so easily, which wouldn't be that far into fantasy. It isn't the first time we've noticed such things. For example, "throwing like a girl" is a thing for most girls, caused by the way the body is put together after puberty (before puberty, males and females throw similarly). There are some exercises that are great for men but not women - it makes the pelvic bone get weird for some women (can't remember the specifics. Its been 20 years). Considering all this, it is quite possible that women naturally use different movements and different muscle groups to do the same job because of their physical differences. And perhaps this causes less strain. Or maybe it is hormones. You know, or maybe more men shovel than women - they just didn't want to rest on such an assumption when they don't know it to be true.

__s 9y ago

Friend of my parents had this happen (& hey, we're in Canada) Guy shovelled, went inside, had a shower, passed out in bed. Had to be rushed to hospital, bedridden for a couple days. Survived, but now his wife's a bit worrisome about him shovelling now

colanderman 9y ago
Pure speculation but I wonder if that was caused by the rapid shift in environmental temperature resulting in rapid blood vessel dilation? [1] Or do you know it was a heart attack and not fainting? [1] https://answers.webmd.com/answers/5038612/why-do-i-faint-or-nearly-faint-after-taking-a-shower https://answers.webmd.com/answers/5038612/why-do-i-faint-or-...

bovermyer 9y ago

So basically I have a medical reason not to shovel snow. I'm OK with this.

munchbunny 9y ago

Sounds like one theory of the actual mechanism is the Valsalva maneuver? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valsalva_maneuver https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valsalva_maneuver Could that be mitigated by just learning to not do it? People training in martial arts often practice this by combining breathing with specific moves, such as exhaling while punching. I imagine you could also learn to exhale as you lift the shovel.

svalorzen 9y ago
Not doing the Valsalva maneuver means that you break your spine. It works by using the compressed air inside your lungs as support so that your abdominal and back muscles can do their work. This is the reason that when you go to a physiotherapist and they crack your spine they ask you to exhale before, in order to be able to work without needing to fight your internal pressure. There is a reason we evolved with the instinct to do it. Edit: to also comment on your note about martial arts: the very short scream you do when throwing a punch or kick is precisely a way to induce a Valsalva maneuver. Notice that you don't scream until you're out of breath, but you exhale very fast and you stop precisely when you hit, forcing pressure inside you to give you the support to need during the transfer of forces of the blow.
- Paul-ish 9y ago
  > Not doing the Valsalva maneuver means that you break your spine. This is only anecdote, but if I fail to do the valsalva when exercising I just don't have as much power. I haven't broken my back yet. The valsalva is useful at max effort, but doesn't seem necessary for a sustained activity such as shoveling snow. If they find valsalva is a problem, the answer may be not to shovel so much snow in one push.
  - svalorzen 9y ago
    You don't have as much power because your body automatically scales down to prevent you from injuring yourself. In addition, performing an exercise wrong doesn't mean that you automatically get injured, just that your chances of hurting yourself go up. If you're lucky, you're never going to break anything - this also depends on the kind of exercise you're doing and on its intensity. As for the max-effort thing, the Valsalva maneuver can be performed at different degrees of intensity. It's not like every time you do it you have veins popping in your eyeballs, and I don't expect those untrained men referenced in the article to do it very strongly. It is correlated with the effort you're doing and on how much you're consciously compressing the air. But yes, longer effort with less snow per shovel would definitely help.

bluedino 9y ago

Snow shoveling for me has always caused insane lower back pain. I have a bad back and have been laid up in bed for days because of it, even doing silly things like bending over to pick something small up. I used that as an excuse to buy a snowblower. Now, removing snow is as easy as using a self-propelled lawnmower. It's one of those things I didn't realize I was missing out on and wish I had bought years ago.

sjg007 9y ago
Yep, people should hire someone or buy a snow blower. Or if you have too long of a drive get a plow.

joe_the_user 9y ago

The context is that many people pick up a shovel and do maximum effort despite living a sedentary life. The alternative argument would be that this kind of exercise is simply bad for a person, especially a men over 50 - that it should be avoided even by those otherwise in "good shape". And yet a third possibility is that this kind of exercise is that this sort of exercise merely moves forward the occurrence of a heart disease event that would have otherwise occurred reasonably soon otherwise. Anyone know any studies puzzling these possibilities out.

whalesalad 9y ago
I know so many men over 50 through the crossfit community that are in killer shape. Age has absolutely nothing to do with it. The fact of the matter is that most individuals are completely out of shape. Maximum effort should not be a seasonal chore around the house.
- carbocation 9y ago
  Age has quite a bit to do with it. You rarely see acute myocardial infarction in 15 year olds, and you often see it in 80 year olds. There is a continuum of risk, and age plays a role. Because there are risk factors that are uncorrelated or imperfectly correlated with physical fitness and its outward manifestations, even physically fit individuals cannot escape this.
  - whalesalad 9y ago
    For those reading, acute myocardial infarction is the scientific word for heart attack. Not sure why that needed to be used in this context. Second... if take a 15 year old who is out of shape and an 80 year old who is out of shape and have them shovel equal length driveways ... sure my money is on the 15 year old. But... you can't say that this problem is due to people being older. 30 year old folks can still have heart attacks shoveling snow. There are loads of folks out there who are in their 40s and 50s who won't experience any medical issues with the exertion required to shovel a driveway. So the point I was trying to illustrate is that it's not fair to blame age. Age is one variable in a very complex equation that influences your level of fitness.

ilamont 9y ago

My cousin died in his late 30s while attempting to pull-start a chain saw in very cold conditions. The explanation I heard was arteries and vessels constrict in extreme cold, and combined with exertion triggered the heart attack.

colanderman 9y ago

> The context is that many people pick up a shovel and do maximum effort despite living a sedentary life. This. Shoveling after last week's storm was definitely the most concerted exercise I've had in a year or more. I definitely felt at one point that my heart was working way too hard (for whatever physiological reason; likely those outlined in the article) and forced myself to rest a few minutes, despite not being physically exhausted. And I'm neither overweight nor have high blood pressure.

FLUX-YOU 9y ago
Did you do warmups before shoveling snow? I can't imagine going outside and doing that in cold weather with cold muscles.
- colanderman 9y ago
  Nope, didn't even know this was a thing! That's why the passage I quoted rings so true to me. I lead a sedentary life all year and then one day, with no preparation whatsoever, dive headlong into strenuous exercise in adverse conditions for an hour plus.
- choward 9y ago
  > Did you do warmups before shoveling snow? Seriously? Who does this?
  - FLUX-YOU 9y ago
    Shoveling snow is obviously exercise. Does it seem weird to you that people warm up before lifting or running?
    - choward 9y ago
      No. Neither does it to the average person. I'm just saying doing a warmup before chores is not something that's common practice. Maybe it should be, but you can't just assume it is because it seems like the right thing to do that it's common knowledge.

mikestew 9y ago

Sexist or not, I rarely see women shoveling snow. My wife will on occasion (and even less so now that we live in Seattle), but it's almost always been me because, well, I'm better built for it. But what I didn't hear mentioned is that women have a much lower risk for heart attacks until menopause. And I don't know that I've ever seen a 55 year old woman shoveling snow (again, anecdata). If you strapping young lads were raised right, you'd go down and do it for her since you already have the shovel out. :-) More so, shoveling snow is amazingly hard work on a level that most people probably rarely experience. I'm a lifelong distance runner with a healthy heart (though weeny little runner arms), and shoveling sure gets my heart going. I can't imagine the strain on a 54 year old guy with a beer gut who spends most of his day sitting. That does sound like a recipe for a heart attack.

scooter_de 9y ago
My wife wen't out first to shovel this morning and she's 54 :-).
roywiggins 9y ago
On the other hand, women who do have heart attacks do not do as well, at least partly because people assume they aren't having one. http://www.bbc.com/news/health-42590013 http://www.bbc.com/news/health-42590013
- mikestew 9y ago
  Yeah, I almost typed "immune" before menopause, but that's not entirely accurate. And as you point out, it implies that a pre-menopausal woman having a heart attack just doesn't happen. Hell, my brother-in-law had an nearly fatal heart attack when he was 34 (bad genetics, helped along by too much drinking and smoking). Gender and number of wrinkles are just data points, but not the deciders of who's having a heart attack and who's not when their arm goes numb.
- klipt 9y ago
  Probably the same reason that men have lower breast cancer survival rates than women - the common assumption is that it's a gender specific disease, which delays diagnosis and treatment: http://www.breastcancer.org/research-news/20120517 http://www.breastcancer.org/research-news/20120517

Red_Tarsius 9y ago

Key takeaways: > Researchers... looked at more than 128,000 patients admitted to hospital for a heart attack, and more than 68,000 heart attack deaths in Quebec between 1981 and 2014 from November to April. They also got weather information... and used it to track snowfall prior to the admission to hospital and/or death. > Among the men, a third of the heart attacks occurred the day after a snowfall. The association between shovelling and heart attack was very strong. If the snow fell for two to three days, the association between shovelling and a heart attack was even stronger. The correlation was true regardless of the patient's age, the presence or absence of cardiovascular risk like high blood pressure or other health conditions. > But here's the thing. The correlation was only true for men – not women. The researchers say they suspect that shovelling caused heart attacks because men are more likely than women to shovel snow. That may be true, or it might be a sexist assumption. But there may be another explanation for the findings: that women shovel snow in a way that doesn't cause heart attacks. > Men age 50 and older with heart disease should avoid shovelling snow period. Why is it sexist to assume that snow shoveling is mostly done by men? It sounds more plausible than secret shoveling techniques.

viraptor 9y ago
Sexist? The assumption itself would be slightly. But in this case assuming it would also be unscientific. And I feel that it's weird they didn't do even a quick check (walk the streets in the morning, or ask people - get a valid sample). Then they'd both have better information and avoid the weird wording.
Dirlewanger 9y ago
Because discussing anything gender/identity-related nowadays has become bereft of all logic and always comes with emotional baggage.
- throwmeaway987 9y ago
  Oh does it? Does it become emotional?
- astura 9y ago

carbocation 9y ago

Similarly, you're more likely to get a have sudden cardiac death while you're running a longer race, even if marathoners are unlikely to suffer from sudden cardiac death overall[1]. 1 = http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1106468#t=abstract http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1106468#t=abstrac... My point in mentioning this is that there are multiple lines of evidence suggesting that your risk of adverse cardiovascular outcomes is highest during peak exercise, not that I think this would be particularly controversial.

ErikVandeWater 9y ago
Don't exercise. Got it.

overcast 9y ago

Suit up, stay hydrated, and use a snowblower you knuckleheads.

mikestew 9y ago
If I still lived in Indiana, for sure I'd buy a snow blower. But I'm not taking up space in my garage for something I'll use once a year at most in the Seattle area. So I keep a snow shovel around, make sure to stay in good shape, and remind myself that going all out versus shoveling at a sustainable rate will probably at most make ten minutes worth of difference.
- shoover 9y ago
  Oddly enough, even here in central Indiana a snowblower is only needed about once in one or two seasons. Most snows are 2" or less and handled with the shovel easier than getting the snowblower out and warmed up. But when you need it, you need it. Fortunately it fits easily under a workbench with the handle folded over when not in use.
  - mikestew 9y ago
    Oddly enough, even here in central Indiana a snowblower is only needed about once in one or two seasons. Yeah, I forgot that before we moved that it didn't seem to snow as much as it used to. Grew up spending entire winters cross-country skiing across the fields. Not so much as I got older. Wanna hear an old man's stories about the Blizzard of '78? :-)
- quickthrower2 9y ago
  If people got on with their neighbours I am sure one snow blower between 20 houses would suffice. Maybe the 'storer' gets their share for free. Could issue an ICO token for the share, for a laugh.
- matte_black 9y ago
  Rent it or hire a service.

djstein 9y ago

title caught my eye. thought I'd share a little anecdotal evidence: grandpa died from a heart attack while shoveling snow

whalesalad 9y ago

The real tragedy here is that folks are living such sedentary lives that a simple activity like clearing snow from your sidewalk/driveway becomes lethal. I was once a typical neckbeard programmer who drank way too much coke and red bull and lived off of unhealthy foods. I have a 180º different lifestyle now and will never go back. I enjoy shoveling my driveway. Everyone should invest in their own physical fitness. Make time for it. Make it your lifestyle so it's not a chore or a second-thought, but a regular part of your routine. At the very least, do it for your mental health.

plopz 9y ago
Or maybe its a good thing that society has progressed far enough that physical vitality is no longer a necessary trait for the advancement of our species.
- whalesalad 9y ago
  No way! Your brain grows and develops when you challenge your body physically. It's established science that strenuous exercise builds new neurons in your brain.
- jackstraw14 9y ago
  I wonder why you think that we've reached this point of progress? It seems like every day we're learning more about how consumer tech is killing us mentally, physically, and emotionally.
  - freehunter 9y ago
    He said society, not our body. For a large chunk of the population, society does not demand physical fitness. That's not the same thing as our bodily health not requiring physical fitness.
tostitos1979 9y ago
May I ask what age you changed your ways? I'm 38 and it feels like constant failure. I also worry the damage is done :(

0x00000000 9y ago

I wonder if there is data on this about snow sports, it seems like it should be common too. Skiing meets most of the same criteria - extreme cold, surprisingly exhausting, high altitude/low oxygen and often getting dehydrated. It is more of a sustained aerobic exercise vs. bursts of exertion though.

protomyth 9y ago

You could also skip buying the "snow shovel" that holds too much snow at a time or is shaped badly for snow removal. You are not power lifting, just clearing an area. Be slow and steady. Instead of the crap snow shovel buy a grain shovel[1], one of the snow pushers[2], or a Toro Power Shovel[3]. If you live in an area that gets a lot of snow then hire a service. 1) https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/stanley-fatmax-fiberglass-d-handle-grain-shovel?cm_vc=-10005 https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/stanley-fatmax-fib... 2) http://www.truevalue.com/product/Polar-Tuff-Snow-Plow-Pusher-38-In-/70231.uts?keyword=snow%20pusher http://www.truevalue.com/product/Polar-Tuff-Snow-Plow-Pusher... 3) https://www.toro.com/en/homeowner/snow-blowers/power-shovel-38361 https://www.toro.com/en/homeowner/snow-blowers/power-shovel-... my dad had one an it worked well

eyepulp 9y ago
Will second the #2 recommendation above - I have a fair amount of sidewalk in front of my house and the front of my office that I bought the snow pushers for. They're fast and move a lot of snow with minimal heavy breathing. 4 years and zero heart attacks. =)

msie 9y ago

In Vancouver, last winter, GlobalBC News made such a big deal out of people not shovelling their sidewalks. They even went so far to shame some owners. They seemed wreck-less about this issue considering that some people (like my dad who's a senior) would be risking their life shovelling the snow. Can you tell I hate the news sometimes? On some issues they really like to stir up outrage. [Edit]At one point people were talking about the issue at work over lunch. Ugh.

astura 9y ago
If the law says the homeowner is responsible for clearing the sidewalk in front of their property (like in my town) then your dad needs to hire someone to do the work if he can't. My neighbor is well into her 80s so she hires. It's not even all that expensive. Not being physically able to do the work yourself is no excuse for neglecting your responsibility as a homeowner. Your dad should be shamed for putting pedestrians in danger.
- sjg007 9y ago
  Or just change the law. City could do it, jobs programs and all. You think I'm kidding but they do the streets anyway.
  - astura 9y ago
    Making a phonecall is a lot easier than changing City law Of course, they are out doing the sidewalk of city property, they have really nice machinery too.
    - sjg007 9y ago
      Yeah, it's kind of a scam that you don't own the sidewalk but they force you to maintain it.
- msie 9y ago
  Well the only ones in danger are people visiting my Dad and he doesn't get too many visitors. Thanks for demonstrating how ridiculously judgemental people have gotten.

davidw 9y ago

If you don't shovel it, you risk having it compact into an icy mess, which can be unhealthy in its own way.

robohamburger 9y ago

Seems like an easy way to help fix this would be to require a snow blower or have the city do it. Or at the very least something in place to make it easier for someone at risk to not have to do the work themselves.

ashark 9y ago
Or butt garages up to the street so there's no driveway to speak of. Oh no, now I also don't have a front lawn to mow. How will I ever get over such a loss.
- robohamburger 9y ago
  The town I lived in you were responsible for shoveling and the overall condition of the sidewalk. It was something like $200 fine for not shoveling. I imagine there are probably many cities with similar laws.
  - ashark 9y ago
    Yeah, but the sidewalk’s like 1/10 the work of the driveway, if that. Heavier the snow the bigger the difference, too, since you have to move the snow so far from the middle to reach the side of the driveway.
    - robohamburger 9y ago
      I just shovel a path up my driveway to my house so no one slips. I don't think there was a fine for driveways.
  - astura 9y ago
    The most effort is the bottom of the driveway where the snow plow packed in the snow.
- bluedino 9y ago
  >> Or butt garages up to the street so there's no driveway to speak of. Talk about getting plowed in.

imglorp 9y ago

> To be perfectly scientific, the researchers have no way of knowing know that shovelling did the guys in. Devil's advocate - perhaps it's some other activity altogether? Just for example, being snowed in with the spouse could lead to some indoor exertion?

Camillo 9y ago

> The correlation was true regardless of the patient's age, the presence or absence of cardiovascular risk like high blood pressure or other health conditions. Perhaps we should say that a sedentary lifestyle is by itself a cardiovascular risk factor, even if it affects the majority of the population. The same thing goes for body weight: even if the majority of adults in the US are overweight, we don't redefine that as the new normal weight, for good physiological and medical reasons. Perhaps with physical activity we have already normalized an unhealthy lifestyle.

neom 9y ago

I loved that they put the word suspect in bold. I wish other publications would do this.

mmmbacn 9y ago

Cold constricts blood vessels, increasing blood pressure. Combine that with the fact that shoveling is mostly strenuous on your arm muscles —- where upper body exercise causes an increased HR and BP as compared to lower body exercise [0]. [0] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4183232/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4183232/

Shivetya 9y ago

I guess I am not a numbers guy, but in six months 68k suffer heart attacks and 60k in the other six months so its snow, for what 8k extra? yeah it can be hard work and some people just keep going regardless of when their body says stop. still I bet a lot of it is purely genetic, thresholds are higher for some in the same health than others. regardless, just some activity per day is good

steev 9y ago

I mentioned this to my wife (who is a doctor) and her response was basically "no duh." She said they learned about this in med school. Her explanation was that this is typically happening to people who rarely exercise and then all of a sudden are physically exerting themselves for a sustained period of time.

jakobegger 9y ago

So I understand that sudden exercise can cause clots to become loose and get stuck in one of your coronary arteries causing a heart attack. But those clots are there whether you exercise or not, right? So they are going to cause a heart attack at some point. So by avoiding exercise, you just delay the inevitable. Am I missing something?

analog31 9y ago
The mechanism is that a plaque builds up in your coronary artery. This plaque can rupture, spontaneously or if disturbed for some reason. Then your blood starts rapidly forming a clot around the location of the rupture, and this is what blocks the artery. https://www.verywell.com/stemi-st-segment-elevation-myocardial-infarction-1746032 https://www.verywell.com/stemi-st-segment-elevation-myocardi...

timothycrosley 9y ago

Does this also mean that areas that rarely get snowfall also have a lower rate of heart attacks?

justaman 9y ago

Great uncle had a heart attack at 63 while shoveling snow.

Spooky23 9y ago

The other big killer is pooping. No joke. If someone at potential risk of a heart attack seems winded or has pain, don’t let them sit on the toilet. That clenching stops your heart.

nexys 9y ago
What about kneeling down with the body straight?

vortico 9y ago

From the linked paper https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20825768 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20825768 >The average annual rate of snow shovel-related injuries and medical emergencies was 4.15 per 100,000 population. That's actually much more than I would have guessed, but is that still high enough for the general public, or HN readers to care enough to change their behavior (i.e. decision to shovel or not)? For comparison, car related fatalities were 11.59 per 100,000 in 2016.

StanislavPetrov 9y ago
> HN readers to care enough to change their behavior (i.e. decision to shovel or not)? Where I live its not an option unless you enjoy being sued. You are legally obligated to keep the sidewalks clear. If you don't, and someone "slips", you are on the hook for a massive settlement. I'd also like to point out that the 4.15 per 100,000 only counts the people who went to the doctor or hospital for their injuries. You should have no doubt that droves of people who end up with back injuries (like myself) from shoveling do not seek medical treatment and are not counted in the statistics.

StanislavPetrov 9y ago

>The context is that many people pick up a shovel and do maximum effort despite living a sedentary life. I'd like to point out that even those of us that work out regularly suffer terribly from shoveling. As someone in his mid 40s who works out regularly, daily exercise may prevent a shoveling-induced heart attack but it does absolutely nothing to prevent crippling lower-back pain that lasts for days/weeks.

jpeloquin 9y ago

Here's a quick review of the large studies which the article cites: [1] says that snowfall in Canada is correlated with heart attacks in men, but not in women. Shoveling is just a postulated cause. [2] reports the proportions of different types of snow shoveling injuries in people treated in US hospital emergency departments. I did not find any statements in [2] to support the article's statement that "of the patients with heart attack after shoveling snow, 80 per cent were men." Perhaps the article's author had access to this data or read this result elsewhere. [2] did say that 6.7% of the snow shoveling injuries were cardiac-related. 0.8% of the injuries were fatal; all fatal injuries were cardiac-related. Regarding gender as a risk factor, [2] did report that in patients age ≥ 55 years, males were twice as likely as females to have their injury be cardiac-related. This suggests that being old and male does confer extra risk of snow shoveling-related heart attack. Note that [2] cites work saying that cold temperatures alone, even absent physical exertion, are associated with heart attack in at-risk patients. Cold temperature, independent of snow shoveling, could therefore be a cause for the results in [1]. [1] http://www.cmaj.ca/content/189/6/E235 http://www.cmaj.ca/content/189/6/E235 [2] http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0735675709003714 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0735675709...

krn1p4n1c 9y ago

Get one of these: [0]: http://www.biltema.se/sv/Fritid/Tradgard/Vinter/Snoslade-2000034889/ http://www.biltema.se/sv/Fritid/Tradgard/Vinter/Snoslade-200... [1]: http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3994134 http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=39941... - in the US for moving 90% of the snow and if you have to scoop the last bit it's not backbreaking.

newswriter99 9y ago

"The notion that women might shovel snow with less risk is an intriguing one that just might make a good study." Is it really sexist to just point out the obvious answer? Women have their men go out and shovel the snow.

astura 9y ago
Countless times in history the "obvious answer" has been dead wrong. It's really bad science to just assume the "obvious" rather than test it. They acknowledge so.
- newswriter99 9y ago
  To ignore the obvious and simplest hypothesis because you're afraid of being labelled politically incorrect is just as unscientific.
  - astura 9y ago
    This is such a ridiculous comment that I'm pretty sure your just trolling Nobody's ignoring it, it was assumed by the authors as the most likely reason for the disparity in the sentence before the one you quoted.