New findings today show how taking a regular walk can significantly reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke and cancer.
Research carried out by Professor Conrad Earnest, from the Department for Health at the University of Bath, England, found that walking at least three times a week for 30 minutes reduced the risk of developing metabolic syndrome from moderate to low.
Metabolic syndrome is the name given to the cascade of events that often lead to diabetes as the body ceases to be able to handle sugars.
Commenting on the findings, which are published today (February 5) in the Journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings, he said: “Pretty much anyone can get into the moderate fitness category and the effects on risk are phenomenal.”
The study examined the fitness levels of 38,000 men and women from the Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study, the largest database of its kind in the world.
Statistical models were to categorise the fitness levels into low (sedentary); moderate (equivalent to most public health guidelines); and high, and a summed “z score” approach was used, which enables doctors to give their patients credit for improvement, even if they do not move out of the formal measurement for Metabolic Syndrome.
Those in the moderate fitness category were found to have a significantly reduced prevalence of metabolic syndrome, compared to those in the low fitness category.
“The take home message from this research is twofold,” said Prof Earnest. “Firstly, the biggest reduction in risk is when you compare moderate fitness levels to low fitness levels.
“Secondly, to become moderately fit is as basic as following public exercise guidelines for simple exercise or activity for 30 minutes three to five times a week.
“People don’t have to commit to a structured exercise programme, or take up jogging; it’s as simple as being more active by getting off the couch or up from your desk and walking on a regular basis.”
The next stage of the research is to assess what happens when a patient improves their fitness level, or if they regress.
Earnest C. Cross-sectional association between maximal estimated cardiorespiratory fitness, cardiometabolic risk factors and metabolic syndrome for men and women in the Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study. Journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings 5 February 2013
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