Physical activity may lead to a longer life, even for those who don’t become active until middle age and beyond, according to a large cohort study newly published in the BMJ.
The population-based investigation of more than 14,000 middle-aged and older people examined the impact of physical activity on mortality from all causes, cardiovascular disease and cancer. The researchers found that those who increased and consistently maintained their physical activity had longer lifespans, regardless of past activity history and established health risk factors, including overall diet quality and measures of body mass, blood pressure, triglycerides, and cholesterol.
“Maintaining or increasing physical activity levels from a baseline equivalent to meeting the minimum public health recommendations has the greatest population health impact, with these trajectories being responsible for preventing nearly one in two deaths associated with physical inactivity,” wrote lead author Soren Brage, Ph.D., of the University of Cambridge.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends that adults engage in at least two to five hours per week of moderate-intensity exercise, or 75 minutes to 150 minutes per week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity.
Read the study
