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Tour de France cyclists live longer than general population
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AMSTERDAM — French cyclists who participated in the Tour de France race from 1947 to 2012 lived an average of 6 years longer than the general population, according to findings presented at ESC Congress 2013.
The study assessed 786 cyclists from France who participated in at least one race since 1947 and compared them with the general French male population of the same age.
In total, 208 cyclists (26%) died by Sept. 1, 2012. Xavier Jouven, MD, PhD, from the Sudden Death Expertise Center in Paris, reported a standardized mortality ratio of 0.59 (95% CI, 0.51-0.68) and a mortality rate that was 41% lower than the general population.
“Considering 1947 to 1951, [with more than] 60% of the deaths, we estimate an additional longevity of about 6 years” for these cyclists, Jouven said at a press conference.
The two main causes of death were neoplasms (32.2%; SMR, 0.56) and CVDs (29%; SMR, 0.67), both of which occurred less frequently than in the general population. The three main diagnoses of cancer were digestive (35%), lung (22%) and prostate (7%). The third highest cause of death (15.8%) was classified as “external,” mostly related to trauma or accidents. Other causes of death included infectious diseases (2.2%), endocrine and nutritional diseases (2.2%), neurological problems (2.2%), digestive system diseases (2.2%) and genitourinary diseases (1.1%).
Xavier Jouven
“We observed the same results according to every class of age, except for the youngest participants,” Jouven said.
Cyclists aged younger than 30 years had a significantly higher death rate (SMR, 1.65) compared with the general population, and a high frequency of traffic or race accident deaths.
Mortality was also consistent across different periods of participation: 1947-1970, 1971-1990 and 1991-2012.
The study did not adjust for risk factors in the general population as compared with Tour de France participants, Jouven said.
“The Tour de France has been the subject of many controversies because of exposure to performance-enhancing techniques, in the past and still recently, described as potentially promoting an increase in mortality,” he said. “Our results do not allow a detailed assessment of the balance between positive effects of high-level sports activity and selection of healthy elite athletes, versus any potential deleterious effects of excessive physical exercise or alleged doping.”
The French cyclists studied made up 30% of the total participants of the Tour de France. They had participated in a median of 2.5 Tour de France races and were followed for a median of 37.4 years. Their median age at first race was 25 years.
These study results mark the centenary of the Tour de France in 2013.
For more information:
Jouven X. Hot Line IV: Late breaking trials on heart failure and acute coronary syndromes. Presented at: the European Society of Cardiology Congress; Aug. 31-Sept. 4, 2013; Amsterdam.
Disclosure: Jouven reports no relevant financial disclosures.