Heart Rate Variability (HRV) is very important health market, and has major implications for those with diabetes. We will give an overview of what Heart Rate Variability is, how to measure it, and how to interpret results and understand the impact it might have on diabetics.
Heart rate variability measures the time difference between each and every heartbeat. Many people incorrectly assume that a heart beats at a steady rhythm. The truth is that a healthy heart is one which experiences a large time variation between each and every heart beat. If your heart beats at a constant time variation between each heart beat (known as low variability) it is not a good thing!
What Determines How My Heart Beats
The human body is equipped with the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) which controls bodily functions on a subconscious basis (meaning you have no conscious control over how it functions). The Autonomic Nervous System is responsible for bodily functions such as:
- Your Heart Rate
- Digestion
- Respiratory Rate
- Urination
- Sexual Arousal
The Autonomic Nervous System is comprised of 2 main branches:
- The Sympathetic Nervous System
- The Parasympathetic Nervous System
What is the function of the Sympathetic Nervous System
Considered the “Fight or Flight” system. It is responsible for priming the body for action, particularly in situations threatening survival. It constricts most of the blood vessels in the body, including many of those in the skin, the digestive tract, and the kidneys. The effect of this is a shunting of blood away from the organs not necessary to the immediate survival of the organism and an increase in blood flow to those organs involved in intense physical activity.
Body changes during fight-or-flight response:
- Rapid Heart Beat
- Rapid Breathing
- Pale or Flushed Skin
- Dilated Pupils
- Trembling
What is the function of the Parasympathetic Nervous System
The parasympathetic system is responsible for the “rest-and-digest” activities that occur when the body is at restive state, especially after eating. It controls bodily functions such as:
- Blood Pressure
- Heart Rate
- Respiration
- Digestion
- Urination
- Sexual Response (Erections in males)
- Pupillary Response – contracts pupils depending on outdoor light
How the Sympathetic and Parasympathetic Nervous Systems Work Together
The Sympathetic and Parasympathetic nervous systems work together to control the same organs, however with an opposite effect. Remember that the sympathetic nervous system prepares the body for a fight-or-flight response (needed for short term survival) while the Parasympathetic nervous system prepares the body for rest-and-digest response (needed or long-term survival.
| Sympathetic nervous system | Parasympathetic Nervous System |
|---|---|
| Controls Simulation of fight-or-flight response | Controls simulation of “rest-and-digest” activities critical for your body to recover and regenerate |
| Needed for short-term survival | Needed for long-term survival |
Throughout the day, on a subconscious level, your Sympathetic nervous system and Parasympathetic nervous system work together to find a balanced state. With each heartbeat, your nervous system instructs your body to speed up (fight-or-flight response) or slow down (rest-and-digest response). A healthy nervous system is able to balance both responses and operate in the middle throughout the day.
What is the Benefit of Measuring Heart Rate Variability?
Heart Rate Variability is an effective way to measure the Autonomic Nervous system and determine if there is a balance between the functioning of the Sympathetic Nervous System and the Parasympathetic Nervous System.
The Sympathetic nervous system’s physiological response to stressors focuses on short term survival trading off long term health. It is never a good idea for the body to remain in a prolonged fight-or-flight response. When you find yourself constantly in a stressful environment (work stress, relationship stress, financial stress, etc), your body can remain in a prolonged fight-or-flight response. There have been many studies which pointed out the detrimental impact it can have on your body. Things such as:
- Risk for developing disease or progression of an existing disease (Type 2 diabetes, autoimmune diseases, cardiovascular disease, respiratory illness
- Bad mood regulation, depression, anxiety, PTSD
- Worsened physical performance (less stamina)
- Less mental clarity
Now that you understand the importance of measuring the functioning of your Autonomic Nervous System, the next question is how to measure how well it functions.
How to Measure Heart Rate Variability
Things you need to get started:
- A Smartphone (iOS, Android)
- An HRV Measuring App. I personally use EliteHRV and it’s great. In the next post, I will be doing a review of the app and going over what each of the measurements mean.
- A Heart Rate Monitor. The one that I use, and the one that is considered the most accurate is the Polar Heart Rate Chest Strap
Steps to measure your Heart Rate Variability:
- Put the Polar H10 Heart Rate Chest Strap on
- Launch the EliteHRV app on your phone
- Use Bluetooth to sync the 2 devices,
- Click on Morning HRV test or Open reading
- Lie down for 3 minutes to let the app measure your HRV
And this is what the results look like:
According to a recent study by BMC Research which measured the impact heart rate variability in patients with type 2 diabetes – it was determined that those with poor blood sugar control had a significantly higher heart rate (79 bmp vs 75bmp), and overall lower Heart Rate Variability (SDNN: 102ms vs 112.3 ms).
This just shows the impact of why measuring heart rate variability is important, especially for those with diabetes. This can often be an early warning sign with living with undiagnosed diabetes, and even for those already diagnosed with diabetes, it can often be used as an early warning sign for other medical conditions.
Here is a link to grab your Polar Heart Rate Strap so that you can get started measuring your heart rate variability.
Disclaimers: The content is purely informative and educational in nature and should not be construed as medical advice. Please use the content only in consultation with an appropriate certified medical or healthcare professional.
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