Eagles fever is sky high. But can our hearts take another double doink or a last-second win? Doctors say getting over-excited can be dangerous — rarely — for people with severe heart conditions. But for the rest of us, get ready for a hormone overload. It’s a sea of green at the Abington Family Medicine office. The whole staff is in Eagles green in anticipation of Sunday’s big playoff game vs. the Saints. “In a world today where there are so many divisive things, right to have one thing to rally and get behind is good for everybody, it’s good for the soul, it’s good for the spirit,” said Dr. Susan Fidler of Abington Family Medicine. Dr. Fidler says being an Eagles fan, with all the ups and downs, can also impact your body. “They’ve actually looked at this, and during an exciting sporting event, your heart rate and blood pressure response can be that of high-exertion exercise,” Dr. Fidler said. Loving our Eagles can be a workout and an emotional rollercoaster. Just when the season looked over, a last-second fluke miss kept the dream alive. “When we win, our body releases dopamine and dopamine makes us feel really good and really happy,” Dr. Fidler said. “And when we lose, our body releases cortisol, that’s our stress hormone so it makes us feel stressed out.” Hoping to keep away that dreaded cortisol, Eagles fans are clinging to long-held Eagles’ traditions. “Lots of Eagles superstitions — I have to sit in a particular spot, this is the jersey I wore through the playoff run last year,” Dr. John Russell said. “I usually don’t have a goatee, but I had a goatee last year when the Eagles won the Super Bowl, so I have to regrow a goatee.” “From a medical standpoint, superstitions help to ease our anxiety, like we have some control of what’s gonna happen,” Dr. Fidler said. Hopefully, on Monday, we’ll be feeling a lot of the feel-good, winning hormone dopamine. Because this isn’t just a game, it really does impact your health. Dr. Fidler and her family will be having pepperoni bread for the game on Sunday, which is what they had last weekend. All about those winning traditions. Source
