Department of Health lists activities to avoid for 7 days after Covid-19 hit, Health News & Top Stories

Swimming, cycling, heavy lifting, and playing ball and racket are some of the activities that individuals should avoid for seven days after receiving their first and second doses of a Covid-19 vaccine, a declared the Ministry of Health (MOH).

The clarification in a Department of Health notice on Monday follows an amended recommendation that people should avoid strenuous physical activity after one of their doses of the Covid-19 mRNA vaccine.

An earlier advisory from June 11 recommended that vaccinated people avoid strenuous physical activity for a week after their second dose of a Covid-19 mRNA jab.

The latest opinion states that competitive sports and physical education classes should also be avoided as they are considered exhausting.

Safe physical activities to do one week after vaccination include occasional walking, stretching, standing work, and housework.

“We recommend that everyone, especially adolescents and young men under the age of 30, avoid strenuous physical activity, such as strenuous exercise, for one week after the first and second dose,” the health ministry said in the latest opinion.

“During this time, if you develop chest pain, shortness of breath, or abnormal heartbeat, you should see a doctor immediately.”

The ministry said it updated its recommendation based on new data here and abroad.

In its Covid-19 vaccine safety update on Monday, the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) said a 16-year-old man suffered a heart attack shortly after a strenuous weightlifting session at a six-year-old gym. days after receiving his first dose of a Covid-19 mRNA vaccine.

Investigations are ongoing.

The HSA safety update indicated that seven of 12 cases of myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) and pericarditis (inflammation of the outer wall of the heart) occurring in individuals after receiving an mRNA vaccine involved men under the age of 30.

That’s higher than expected for this age group, he said.

Both inflammatory conditions occur more often in men than in women.

“While most people with vaccine-related myocarditis seen locally and internationally have mild symptoms and recover without incident, it is possible that the disease is worsened by intense factors or activities that can affect the heart,” said Monday the Ministry of Health.

Cardiologists contacted by The Straits Times yesterday agreed that it was wise to refrain from exercise, even moderate, for at least a week after vaccination.

Moderate exercise can include weight training, brisk walking, slow jogging (5 km / h to 6 km / h), biking, or swimming.

“Given new knowledge about the risk of myocarditis occurring in young men after vaccination against Covid-19, it is prudent that exercises, especially those of moderate to high intensity, be suspended for a week,” said said Professor Tan Huay Cheem, senior consultant. at the Department of Cardiology at the National University Heart Center, Singapore.

“This is because we cannot predict who will develop myocarditis after vaccination, even though the incidence is low.”

High-intensity exercise includes circuit training, vigorous forms of strength training, and moderate activities performed at a heart rate, such as sprinting or swimming long distances, he said.

Professor Tan said this precaution should apply to all individuals, but especially younger people, who tend to be more active and likely to engage in strenuous activity.

“Typically, strenuous exercise will be one activity in which you cannot speak in full sentences during training,” he said. “If you can walk and sing while exercising without feeling short of breath, then that is low intensity exercise.”

He said high performance athletes who are concerned about losing their physical condition may consider “reducing their level of exercise” to low intensity.

Dr Kenneth Ng, consultant cardiologist at the Novena Heart Center, thinks it is safe to “get complete rest from exercise for a week to 10 days after vaccination.”

After that, one can gradually increase the activity, he said.