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11 minutes of walking a day could reduce risk of early death from heart attacks and strokes
Just 11 minutes of walking a day could reduce your risk of dying prematurely from cardiovascular diseases, according to a study. It highlighted the benefits of people managing at least half the recommended level of physical activity each day.
Research shows that short amounts of exercise can still have substantial benefits. Not only does walking improve your mental�and physical�health, but another study even shows that walking 30 minutes every day can prevent lower back pain from recurring.
Minutes of walking has incredible health benefits
The University of Cambridge highlighted a study published last year in the�British Journal of Sports Medicine, explains researchers explored the amount of physical activity necessary to have a beneficial impact on several chronic diseases and premature death.
Findings show one in 10 early deaths could be prevented if everyone managed at least half the recommended level of physical activity.
Cardiovascular disease is a general term that includes�diseases that affect the heart and blood vessels – such as heart disease and stroke – and is the leading cause of death globally.
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Physical activity, particularly moderate-intensity, is known to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer, and so the NHS recommends adults do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity a week.
Moderate-intensity physical activity is considered a brisk walk (5kmh or faster), water aerobics, and cycling (slower than 16kmh on primarily flat or level terrain without hills).
A team led by researchers at the University of Cambridge revealed only 11 minutes a day (75 minutes a week) of moderate-intensity physical activity would be sufficient to lower the risk of such diseases.
Researchers from the Medical Research Council (MRC) Epidemiology Unit carried out a systematic review and meta-analysis, to produce a large analysis of the association between physical activity levels and risk of early death.
Results showed accumulating 75 min per week of moderate-intensity activity ended with a 23% lower risk of early death.
Work your way up to the recommended physical activity
If you find the idea of 150 minutes of physical fitness a week challenging, the findings are good news as some physical activity is better than doing none.
You could start by managing 75 minutes, and eventually increasing to the full recommended amount.
75 minutes has been said to be enough to reduce the risk of developing cardiovascular disease by 17% and cancer by 7%.
In the article, Professor James Woodcock from the MRC Epidemiology Unit raved about “the substantial benefits to heart health and reducing your risk of cancer even if you can only manage 10 minutes every day.”
The researchers calculated if everyone in the studies had done the equivalent of at least 150 min per week, around one in six (16%) early deaths would be prevented, one in nine (11%) cases of cardiovascular disease and one in 20 (5%) cases of cancer would be prevented.
