This study used accelerometry to gain an accurate view of the population’s physical activity levels and found the benefits of exercise were close to twice as strong as previous estimates indicate.
If everyone was as physically active as those in the top 25%, those over the age of 40 could add 5 years to their life, according to a study recently published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine led by researchers from Griffith University.
Examining the effects of exercise on lifespan
The most active people were found to have a 73% lower risk of death than those who were the least active. The study also found that increasing physical activity levels could extend lifespan by 11 more years, and for the least active people, a single one-hour walk could provide an additional six hours of life. Additionally, the least active stand to gain the most benefits from increasing physical activity.
“If you’re already very active or in that top quartile, an extra hour’s walk may not make much difference as you’ve, in a sense, already ‘maxed out’ your benefit,” said lead researcher Professor Lennert Veerman. “If the least active quartile of the population over age 40 were to increase their activity level to that of the most active quartile, however, they might live, on average, about 11 years longer.”
“This is not an unreasonable prospect, as 25 percent of the population is already doing it,” said Veerman “It can be any type of exercise but would roughly be the equivalent of just under three hours of walking per day.”
Exercise is the secret to living a longer and healthier life
The researchers believe that the consequences of low levels of physical activity/being sedentary could rival the negative effects of smoking and cited other research finding that each cigarette could cut 11 minutes away from the smoker’s lifespan.
Living an active lifestyle, by extension, offers protective effects against certain cancers and chronic illnesses such as obesity, stroke, diabetes, and heart disease. Veerman explains that physical activity has been largely underestimated in the capacity to improve health outcomes, and suggests that even modest increases in daily movement could lead to significant longevity benefits.
Cut your risk of death in half
“If there’s something you could do to more than halve your risk of death, physical activity is enormously powerful,” says Veerman “If we could increase investment in promoting physical activity and creating living environments that promote it such as walkable or cyclable neighborhoods and convenient, affordable public transport systems, we could not only increase longevity but also reduce pressure on our health systems and the environment.”
Take away
Time and time again research has shown that exercise and longevity go hand in hand, think of it as sweat equity. For most people, maintaining an exercise routine can be done at any age. Staying active helps to improve brain health, improves moods, promotes better sleep, assists with weight management, increases energy, supports bone and muscle health, decreases stress, and reduces the risk of dementia, heart disease, and diabetes with controlled blood pressure from regular exercise. Those are some pretty substantial reasons to move more.
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References/Sources/Materials provided by:
https://news.griffith.edu.au/2024/11/27/simple-secret-to-a-longer-life/
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