Increasing moderate activity could cut stroke risk by 40%.
New analysis adds further evidence to the link between a
sedentary lifestyle and risk of disease and disability
Older adults who up their moderate activity from less than
three minutes a day to 14 minutes could reduce their risk of a stroke.
Older adults who increase the amount of moderate activity
from less than three minutes a day to at least 14 minutes could cut their risk
of stroke by more than 40%, research suggests.
Being sedentary, whether sitting for long periods or
otherwise not moving for lengthy bouts, has been linked to an increased risk of
conditions from heart disease to obesity, with the World Health Organization
stating that physical inactivity is a leading cause of disease and disability.
Writing in the journal Jama Network Open, researchers in the
US reported how they analysed data collected through activity trackers worn for
up to seven days by 7,607 participants within a period from 2009 to 2013.
“This study’s
findings suggest that more time spent being physically active, especially at
moderate intensities, and less time spent being sedentary, particularly in
longer bouts, may help reduce the risk of stroke,” the authors said – although
they warned that extrapolating specific results to individuals is more
difficult.
The participants, who were on average just over 63 years
old, were then followed up for an average of 7.4 years, in which time 286 of
them had a stroke.
Not in the script: doctors turn to parkrun and social
activities to treat chronic conditions
The team’s analysis revealed that the third of participants
who managed at least 14 minutes a day had a 43% lower risk of stroke compared
with the third of participants who managed less than 2.7 minutes of moderate to
vigorous exercise a day. This was the case once factors such as age, sex,
smoking status, alcohol consumption, heart conditions and amount of time spent
sedentary were taken into account.
The analysis also suggested that four to five hours a day of
light-intensity activity could lower stroke risk.
“Of course, accumulating [that] would likelyrequire some
intentional effort as most older adults don’t achieve that much,” said Dr
Steven Hooker, the first author of the study from San Diego State University.
Separately, the team added that the most inactive
participants, who spent more than 13 out of the 16 recorded hours a day being
sedentary, had a 44% higher risk of stroke than those who spent fewer than 11.8
hours in this state.
“These results support recent clinical and public health
guidelines encouraging people to move more and sit less to maintain
cardiovascular health,” the team said.
However, the study had limitations, including that only a
maximum of seven days’ worth of data was collected for each participant.
Naveed Sattar, a professor of metabolic medicine at the
University of Glasgow, who was not involved in the work, cautioned that the
study may slightly overestimate the benefit linking activity levels to stroke
risk, in part as people with minor, often undetected, prior strokesmay be able
to walk less.
But, he said, exercise matters. “There is no doubt that
being more active lessens excess body fat, and helps keep blood pressure at
lower, healthier levels,” he said, adding that while any activity is good,
moderate to vigorous exercise will offer more benefits for the time expended.
“As both of these factors are strong risk factors for stroke, it follows that
walking more and sitting less will protect the brain as well as the heart.”
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