Human flexibility and arterial stiffness

Abstract

Most Japanese people have had their flexibility tested in childhood physical educa-tion classes. Recent studies may provide a retrospective answer as to why those measurements may be important. Flexibility is one of the components of physical fitness along with cardio-respiratory fitness and muscular strength. Although flexibility was originally assumed to cor-relate with other aspects of physical fitness, recent studies demonstrate that a less flexible body indicates arterial stiffening. Arterial stiffness has been identified as an independent risk factor for mortality and cardiovascular disorders. Therefore, there is a possibility that flexibility is a novel fitness indicator related to cardiovascular disease, which can be easily evaluated over all ages and in any area (e.g., medical check-up). Now, flexibility may no longer be simply viewed as important just for optimizing functional movement in daily life and/or reducing the risk of injury. This article reviews the recent findings on the relationship between flexibility and arterial stiffness, emphasizing " flexibility and arterial stiffness " , " genetics and flexibility " , " stretching and arterial stiffness " , and " flexibility and blood pressure " .