HEART RHYTHM
Your heartbeat isn’t a metronome. That’s a good thing.
The time between heartbeats changes a little, beat to beat. Researchers use that flexibility as a sign of the body’s “relax” system. Here is what a blind EESystem test found.
THE MEASURE
Heart-rhythm flexibility (HRV).
A chest strap records the gap between beats. More variation, within a healthy range, is often read as the body’s rest-and-recover system being more active.
THE TEST
Off first, then on.
Dr. Alin Horea Suta at Quantum Clinic in Oradea, Romania ran 44 adults through two-hour sessions. For the first 16 hours the system was secretly switched off. Then it ran for real for up to 32 hours. Nobody was told when.
| Phase | Typical rise in heart-rhythm flexibility |
|---|---|
| Switched off (placebo) | +6% |
| Really on | +18% |
NEXT
A follow-up study is planned.
The researchers plan a larger follow-up to build on these results.
QUESTIONS
Straight answers.
Did the EESystem change heart-rate variability?
Yes. In a blind test of 44 adults, the typical rise was +6% with it secretly off and +18% with it on.