March 29, 2001 – According to a recent study, it only takes a leisurely one hour walk a week to halve the risk of developing heart disease compared to sedentary people.
Research, conducted among 39,372 women aged 45 and over, found that women who exercise vigorously have the lowest risk of heart problems (which isn’t really a big revelation). On the other hand, those who walk at least an hour a week reduce their risk of coronary heart disease by half compared to women who are completely sedentary. This weekly short walk is well below the official recommendation of the US Department of Health to practice at least half an hour of vigorous walking more than 4 times per week.
According to one of the study’s authors, Dr. I-Min Lee of Harvard University, “a little is better than nothing at all.” Dr Lee adds that this study is not meant to encourage laziness, but rather to demonstrate that if you give people a goal that is easy to achieve, they will be more inclined to attempt to reach it. “Women, for example, who think they cannot change their harmful habits, such as smoking, can at least improve their situation by adding a good habit to their daily life. ”
According to one commenter, the thirty minutes of daily vigorous activity, which is the recommended norm, is better than a single one hour activity per week but the results of the new study will have to be taken into account in the revision of the standards and recommendations. official.
HealthPassport.net
According to Associated Press, March 26, 20001
Lee IM, Rexrode KM, Cook NR, Manson JE, Buring JE. Physical Activity and Coronary Heart Disease in Women: Is “No Pain, No Gain” Pass? JAMA. 2001 Mar 21; 285 (11): 1447-1454.
