Walking 10,000 steps a day is the "sweet spot" for lowering your risk of disease and death, but according to research published recently in JAMA-Internal Medicine and JAMA-Neurology, how fast you walk is equally important. Very important.
Researchers in Australia and Denmark monitored 78,500 adults using wearable trackers. It turns out that walking 10,000 steps a day can reduce the risk of dementia, heart disease, cancer, and even death. However, the benefits of a faster cadence band far outweigh the number of steps.
"In order to maintain health, the ideal goal is not only to walk 10,000 steps a day, but to walk faster," said Matthew Ahmadi, a research fellow at the University of Sydney's School of Medicine and Health.
The study used UK Biobank data to link the step count data of 78,500 UK adults aged 40 to 79 with their health seven years later. This is the largest study to objectively track the relationship between steps and health.
Participants wore wrist tachometers and measured physical activity for 7 days (minimum 3 days, including weekends and sleep time). This information was linked to participants' health records through multiple data sources, including hospitalization information, primary care and cancer records, and death registries.
The researchers noted that the study was observational, meaning no direct cause-and-effect relationship could be drawn. But they noticed a strong and consistent association in the experimental population.
The study showed that for every 2,000 steps taken, the risk of premature death gradually decreased by 8% to 11%, with a "sweet spot" of 10,000 steps per day. Cardiovascular disease and cancer incidence have similar links. The more steps you take each day, the lower your risk of all-cause dementia, and 9,800 steps is the optimal "dose" to reduce your risk of dementia by 50%. Higher stride intensity compared to daily steps was beneficial to these results.
"Our study also shows that even walking 3,800 steps a day can reduce the risk of dementia by 25 percent in less active people," said study co-author Borja del Pozo Cruz, an associate professor at the University of Southern Denmark.
"Due to the growing popularity of fitness trackers and apps, step counts are readily available and widely used by the public to track activity levels, but little thought is given to what this data means," said University of Sydney professor Emmanuel Stamatakis.
"These findings could inform the first formal guidelines for walking-based physical activity and help shape public health programs aimed at effective chronic disease prevention," Stamatakis said.
More research on long-term tracker use will reveal more clearly the health benefits of specific levels and intensities of daily walking, the team said.
Related paper information:
https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2022.2672
(Original title "Brisk walking is as important as 10,000 steps a day")