Ten thousand steps a day may no longer be enough for heart health.
Researchers have suggested that a different, lower exercise goal could be even more effective at reducing the risk of early death.
Scientists found that walking just 2,700 steps a day – or about 2 km (1.2 miles) – is enough to reduce the risk of dying young or having a heart attack or stroke.
But reaching 8,700 reduced the risk by up to 60 percent, a study shows.
The results provide “simple and concrete goals for the number of daily steps,” the researchers said.
Walking just 8,000 steps a day – or 4 miles – can reduce the risk of early death, with 7,000 steps cutting the risk of cardiovascular disease by more than half. According to the study, all of the more than 8,000 have minimal additional benefit, despite what fitness gurus say
The team, led by researchers at the University of Granada in Spain, reviewed 12 international studies that examined the effects of daily steps on all-cause mortality in more than 110,000 participants.
The results, published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, showed that participants who walked 2,517 steps daily had an eight percent lower risk of dying early compared to those who walked just 2,000 steps daily.
Meanwhile, the risk of developing cardiovascular disease fell by 11 percent when you reached 2,735.
However, those who walked more saw even greater benefits.
The optimal value for reducing the probability of early death was 8,763, which was associated with a 60 percent reduced risk.
For cardiovascular disease, 7,126 steps per day was associated with the greatest reduction in risk of 51 percent.
The study, which also involved researchers in the Netherlands, Spain and the US, found no difference in the ideal number of steps between men and women.
However, a faster pace was associated with a lower risk of mortality – regardless of the total number of steps per day.
The study’s lead author, Professor Francisco Ortega from the Department of Physical Education and Sport at the University of Granada, said: “Traditionally, many people thought you needed to take around 10,000 steps a day to achieve health benefits, an idea that originated in Japan. ” in the 1960s, but had no scientific basis.
“More steps is never a bad thing.” Our study showed that even 16,000 steps a day poses no risk.
“On the contrary, there are additional benefits compared to walking 7,000 to 9,000 steps per day, but the differences in risk reduction are small.”
“In addition, the step goal should be age-appropriate, with younger people able to set a higher goal than older people.”
Dr. Esmée Bakker, postdoctoral researcher in aerobic exercise and cardiovascular disease at the University of Granada, added: “What’s special about our study is that we are setting clear step goals for the first time.”
“In this study, we show that measurable benefits can be achieved with a small increase in the number of steps per day and that for people with low levels of physical activity, every additional 500 steps improves their health.”
Dr. Bakker added: “Most people don’t know what exercises are considered moderate intensity, making it difficult to verify that they are meeting this exercise standard.”
“Counting steps is much easier, especially since most people have a smartphone or smartwatch these days.”
However, the researchers acknowledged that the study only considered the risk of death and cardiovascular disease and did not examine how these might affect other factors such as sleep quality and mental health.
Additionally, they did not consider whether the ideal step count is the same between different populations, such as older or low-income populations.
But the results add to the wealth of evidence that even modest exercise can benefit health.
Studies have already shown that walking just 1,000 extra steps per day could reduce mortality risk by up to 12 to 15 percent.
The 10,000-step goal was designed by a Japanese marketing campaign for a pedometer following the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.
At this time there was an increased focus on fitness in the host country and companies had sought to capitalize on the excitement surrounding the Games.
One campaign involved marketing Yamasa’s pedometer called Manpo-kei, which literally means “10,000 step meter” in Japanese.
But the arbitrary figure never had any scientific basis. Instead, the number was chosen because the yardstick was a nice, round, memorable number.
Around 7.6 million Brits and 48 million Americans live with cardiovascular disease, which is the general name for a range of conditions affecting the heart or blood vessels.
It is usually associated with a buildup of fatty deposits in the arteries (atherosclerosis) and an increased risk of blood clots.
The numbers are expected to rise due to the aging and growing population and improved survival rates for heart and circulatory diseases.
However, cardiovascular disease can largely be prevented through a good lifestyle, such as quitting smoking, eating a balanced diet, regular exercise and reducing alcohol consumption, health experts say.
HOW MUCH PRACTICE YOU NEED
To stay healthy, adults ages 19 to 64 should try to be active daily and do the following:
- at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity such as cycling or brisk walking every week and
- Strength exercises 2 or more days per week that target all major muscles (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms)
Or:
- 75 minutes of intense aerobic activity every week, such as running or a game of singles tennis
- Strength exercises 2 or more days per week that target all major muscles (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms)
Or:
- a mix of moderate and vigorous aerobic activity per week – for example 2 x 30 minute runs plus 30 minutes of brisk walking equals 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity and
- Strength exercises 2 or more days per week that target all major muscles (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms)
A good rule is that 1 minute of vigorous activity provides the same health benefits as 2 minutes of moderate activity.
One way to achieve the recommended 150 minutes of weekly physical activity is to exercise for 30 minutes on five days each week.
All adults should also break up prolonged sitting with light activity.
Source: NHS