Last Updated: Mar 29, 2023, 06:42 PM IST
iStockModerately-intense physical activity is known to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer. Walking just 8,000 steps once or twice a week can reduce your mortality risk.
A study released on Tuesday shared that including walking in your daily regime can significantly reduce the risk of early death. On average, 8,000 steps make up 6.4 kilometres.
Published in the JAMA Network Open journal, the researchers from Kyoto University and the University of California analysed data from 3,100 adults in Los Angeles city to look at the health benefits of walking only a few days a week. They analysed daily step-count data of participants between 2005 and 2006.
The researchers found that people who walked just 8,000 steps (or more) one or two days a week were 14.9 percent less likely to die over 10 years than those who never reached that mark.
The walking benefits were even higher for those who walked 8,000 steps (or more) three to seven days a week. The mortality risk was as low as 16.5 per cent. Participants in the 65 and older bracket showed higher health benefits of walking 8,000 steps (or more) for one or two days a week.
This isn’t the first study to talk about the health benefits of walking.
Earlier this month, a study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine journal said that brisk walking can reduce the risk of early death.
A team led by the University of Cambridge researchers found that one in ten early deaths could be prevented if people were mindful of their daily physical activity.
iStockInclude walking in your daily regime to reduce the risk of early death. Moderately-intense physical activity is known to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer. The researchers said that just 11 minutes a day (75 minutes a week) of moderate-intensity physical activity – such as a brisk walk – is enough to lower the risk of diseases such as heart disease, stroke and several cancers. The study said that 75 minutes of moderate activity per week can reduce the risk of developing cardiovascular disease by 17 percent and cancer by 7 percent. For some specific cancers like head and neck, myeloid leukaemia, myeloma and gastric cardia, the risk reduction was greater between 14 percent and 26 percent. Whereas, other cancers in the lung, liver, endometrial, colon and breast showed a lower risk of 3-11 percent.
According to World Health Organization, cardiovascular diseases – such as heart disease and stroke – are one of the leading causes of death, globally, claiming 17.9 million lives per year in 2019, while different types of cancer were responsible for 9.6 million deaths in 2017.
While walking comes with great benefits, making it a habit can sometimes be a challenge. Small changes can work wonders.
Here’s how you can ensure you achieve the 8,000-step mark once or twice a week:
– Ensure you take stairs for at least two floors
– Take breaks every hour and move around
– When you get a call, make sure you walk and talk
– When in the office, use the restroom that’s farther
– Avoid keeping large water bottles at your desk so you get up often to fill them up
– When getting a delivery home, ask the executives to drop it at the building entrance so you have to walk the distance to get it
The Body Mass Index (BMI) may not be a definitive tool for weight management, but ensuring you stay within the 20-25 range can make a difference.
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