Viral infections carry lingering heart risks

"Exercise usually helps strengthen the heart but after a bout of flu or another viral infection, it can have deadly consequences. It's advisable to three or four days pass before resuming your workout routine. The condition, myocarditis, slows down the return to the gym. The heart muscle tissue can become infected "more often than you'd think," says Hans-Georg Predel, head of the Institute for Circulatory Research and Sports Medicine at the German Sports Academy in Cologne. And to exacerbate matters, myocarditis often goes unnoticed. "Studies have shown that many of those afflicted never even notice the problem." Regardless of the viral infection - whether it is flu, a cold, measles, chicken pox or hepatitis - there's always the risk the virus can effect the heart. Stress increases the risk that the muscle surrounding the heart can become infected." - eFluxMedia