10 minutes ofphysical activity per day would be enough to reduce the risk of early mortality, according to the results of a study published in the medical journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. Encouraging conclusions when we know that sedentary lifestyle is today a public health problem.
Researchers from several US universities conducted a large study with 3,029 participants, aged 50 to 79, as part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Led by the US National Health Agency (CDC), this survey assessed the health of children and adults in the United States. For 7 days the volunteers wore accelerometers to very precisely assess the level of physical activity. Scientists have been collecting death rates for 8 years.
10 minutes is enough to tell the difference
Unsurprisingly, the study confirmed that sedentary people are five times more likely to die prematurely than the more active, and three times more likely to die than volunteers who engage in moderate physical activity.
But, the researchers also observed that 10 minutes ofphysical activity per day were enough to increase life expectancy. And that switching to 30 minutes of exercise per day had even greater effects on the premature death rate.
“People who walked around their homes, washed the dishes or swept the brooms had a longer life expectancy than those who sat at their desks,” commented Ezra Fishman, in charge of this study. He added that “the activity does not need to be particularly vigorous to be effective. That is the public health message”.
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