Public Release: 20-Nov-2007

Leiden, The Netherlands – November 20, 2007 – According to a new study published in Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis, regular participation in sports reduces the risk of developing blood clots by 39 percent in women and 22 percent in men.

“Women were shown to be even more likely to reap the benefits of regular sporting activities than men,” says F.R. Rosendaal, co-author of the study. “When we excluded women who were pregnant or receiving oral contraceptive or hormone replacement therapy – all possible causes of blood clots – the risk for women was reduced by 55 percent.”

The findings also show that people who did not participate in sports were more than four-times as likely to develop a blood clot if they were obese (with a body mass index of 30 or greater) than lean (with a body mass index of less than 25).

“When we looked at the results, we found that, overall, the mere fact that people took part in a sporting activity at least once a week was enough to lower their risk of blood clots,” say the authors.