When I’m not sitting at my computer, I’m trying to stretch my legs and get my muscles moving and my blood circulating. Researchers associated a sedentary lifestyle with a higher risk of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and metabolic diseases. Recently, I’ve covered the growing research on the benefits of exercise and on walking, which is natural, simple, accessible, and good for your body.
For example, one study revealed that maintaining a brisk walking pace lowers your risk of developing dementia later in life. Walking can also improve your blood sugar, and just a 10-minute walk around the block can lower blood pressure and perk up your mood. Previous research has shown that physical activity can lower the risk of cancer, and a new study from the University of Oxford further explored this association. Does walking really lower your risk of cancer? Does more steps mean an even lower risk? Let’s look at the study.
The study
In a large study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, over 85,000 British adults wore activity trackers measuring their daily movement and the intensity of that movement. After six years on average, the researchers identified patterns and correlations.
The results
The researchers concluded the following:
- Taking more steps was associated with a lower cancer risk, no matter the speed or pace of those steps.
- These benefits became apparent at around 5,000 daily steps.
- The risk of developing up to 13 different types of cancer went down by 11% at around 7,000 steps.
- The risk dropped by 16% at 9,000 steps a day.
- The benefits remained steady beyond 9,000 steps.
What to walk away with
Here’s what to walk away with from this study: walking could decrease your cancer risk no matter how fast you walk. Of course, cancer is complex with lots of factors involved. According to this large study, it’s best to aim for 5,000 steps a day, with these benefits increasing until you reach around 9,000 daily steps, where they level off. This falls in line with previous studies and recommendations of 7,000-10,000 steps per day.
Interestingly, researchers found that strolling 7,000 steps per day could make you 31% less likely to suffer from the symptoms of depression. It’s worth putting one foot in front of the other if you need a little pick-me-up, and you don’t have to do it all at once if you’d prefer to break it up throughout the day.
If thinking about all of these steps is too much, you can just start walking around your neighborhood or your favorite nature trail, knowing that you’re taking steps in the right direction for your health.
