Did you know that a brisk walk may help you sidestep heart disease? Walking at moderate intensity may help in lowering the risk of heart disease, study suggests.
Cardiovascular disease is one of the known leading causes of death. Study reported that to reduce your risk of contracting heart- and blood vessel-related health conditions, walking is a simple yet effective start.
Study:
A study was conducted in the U.S. to find out how walking fared as a means to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease compared to vigorous exercise. It involved 72,488 nurses who aged range from 40-65 years old at the time of entry. None of the particpants had any record of cancer or cardiovascular disease.
The researchers collected detailed data on the particpants’ physical activity in 1986, then updated their data in 1988 and 1992. This information covered both non-vigorous and vigorous exercise, as well as a walking history which they divided into 3 classifications according to pace: average walkers (2.0 to 2.9 mph), easy or casual walkers (less than two mph), and brisk walkers (above three mph).
The participants’ data were divided into quintiles that is according to their number of MET-hours per week. Studies indicated that women in the higher MET quintiles were leaner and had lower incidences of diabetes, hypertension, and hypercholesterolemia, as compared to their peers in the lower MET quintiles.
The women in the highest total activity quintile reported 34% lower risks of contracting cardiovascular diseases. Among women who did not engage in vigorous physical activities, walking at a brisk pace for at least 1-3 hours reported similar results, reducing their risk of coronary event by at least 30%.
These findings are similar to a study for older women. This research involved about 73,700 participants whose ages range from 50-79 upon entry. The enrollment of participants began between 1994 and 1998 and observations were conducted up to the middle of the year 2000’s.
The study reported that women who exercised more had a lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease. This was regardless of the participant’s race or age. As in the previous study noted, the benefits increased the faster the women walked. Also, doing other physical activities aside from walking led to enhanced outcomes.
Effects of Walking On Men:
Recentstudy reported that the risk of men developing coronary diseases is twice that of women. As per a study done on Japanese men, even a little bit of walking goes a long way in preventing this danger.
The research involved 6,017 men whose age ranges from 35-60 years old. The study reported that those who walked longer had lower risk of developing hypertension. Men who walked for at least 20 minutes or more reduced their risk of hypertension by almost 29%, while those who walked for only 10 minutes had a 12% reduction.
You Can Also Do Some Walking When You:
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- Using the stairs instead of the elevator and park farther from your workplace.
- Window shop at the mall
- Stroll through the neighborhood with your dog.
- Spending quality time with your family at the park.
You can set a reachable goal just for today. Then work towards your overall goal of 30 minutes daily by increasing your time as you get in better shape.
If you are busy, you can split your walks into 10-15 minutes each.
Walking is so easy as all you have to do is put a good pair of sneakers, and walk. It is the most accessible form of physical activity, which does not require a lot of equipment.
Sources:
Naturalnews
Heart.Org
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