The painless heart
Discovery
BBC
4.3 • 1.2K Ratings
🗓️ 10 January 2022
⏱️ 28 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Dr Mitch Lomax is a sports scientist at the University of Portsmouth. She helps actual Olympic swimmers get faster. She explains how most of the muscles attached to our skeletons work: Tiny fibres use small-scale cellular energy, which, when all these fibres work in concert, turns into visible muscular movement. Mitch also explains how the dreaded Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, or DOMS, can hit, taking a stair-wincing 48-72 hours to peak after exercise.
But skeletal muscles turn out to be quite different to heart muscles, as consultant cardiologist Dr Rohin Francis explains. Heart cells are more efficient and don't get fatigued like skeletal muscle cells. They are extremely energetic and 'just want to beat'. He also explains that the sensory feedback from the heart muscles is different too. They have a different sort of nerve supply, with fewer sensory nerves, so that there is less chance of pain signals being sent to the brain.
However, heart cells' incredible abilities are counterbalanced by one Achilles-like flaw: They cannot easily heal. Professor Sanjay Sinha is a British Heart Foundation (BHF) Senior Research Fellow and a Professor in Cardiovascular Regenerative Medicine at the University of Cambridge. His job is to fix broken hearts and he explains to Adam how new research into stem cells could be used to fix normally irreparable heart cells.
Producer - Jennifer Whyntie and Fiona Roberts Presenters - Hannah Fry and Adam Rutherford
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Before you listen to this BBC podcast, I'd like to tell you why I love podcasting. |
| 0:04.3 | I'm Sasha Johansson, I'm an Assistant Commissioner for the BBC and I work on making podcasts. |
| 0:11.1 | My real passion is discovering unbelievable unheard stories and working with the biggest |
| 0:16.8 | stars who can really bring those stories to life. |
| 0:20.0 | I love the whole process of making podcasts from the spark of an idea to hearing the final |
| 0:25.9 | edit. |
| 0:26.9 | There's nothing like it. |
| 0:27.9 | What makes BBC podcast special is that we're working for you, so whatever we commission |
| 0:32.6 | has to reflect the things that you care about and love, wherever you are in the UK. |
| 0:37.0 | So if you like this BBC podcast, there's so much more to discover. |
| 0:40.6 | Have a listen on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:42.8 | Hello and welcome to the curious cases of Rutherford and Fry on Discovery for the BBC. |
| 0:48.0 | This is the programme where you send us in the queries, questions and conundrums that |
| 0:52.4 | you are curious about and we will look into them on your behalf using the power of science. |
| 0:57.9 | So please do send us your questions, curious cases at bbc.co.uk and on with the show. |
| 1:10.1 | Today's question concerns a matter of heartache. |
| 1:13.3 | It comes from listener Keith Williams who sent in to QSKs at bbc.co.uk and he writes to |
| 1:19.5 | the good doctors, this one is for Dr Rutherford, I feel. |
| 1:22.8 | I've spent the majority of my life as a couch potato. |
| 1:26.2 | What? |
| 1:27.2 | Hi. |
| 1:28.2 | And then two years ago I decided that to avoid an early grave, I should take my health seriously |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.

