Scientists have pinpointed the exact amount of time you need to walk each day to add a year to your life expectancy.
It’s long been known that regular exercise reduces the risk of major illnesses, including heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and cancer.
For this reason the NHS recommends all adults should be physically active every day — ideally mixing muscle building and aerobic workouts, aiming for 150 minutes a week.
But according to new research, walking for just ten minutes once a day could add up to a year onto your life expectancy if you are over 60 years old.
The UK study showed that men gain more from exercise. A regular walk adds nearly 11 months to women’s life compared with 16 months for men.
The study showed that extra years of life could also be gained by increasing the length and intensity of the stroll.
Walking for 30 minutes a day was linked to an extra 16 months of life in women and nearly two and a half years for men.
The study analysed data from over 40,000 women and over 30,000 men, who were mostly in their 60s. And participants didn’t have to be fit to start with: the research showed that the benefits were seen in people that were previously inactive.
University of Leicester physiologist Tom Yates, who led the study, told MailOnline: ‘We are not exactly sure why there is a gender difference and we need to do more research on this area.
‘What is important about this study is that we are getting a much more precise impact on the benefits of exercise and that is what we haven’t seen before.’
He added ‘The study showed that everybody benefited from increased exercise, especially the people who are currently averagely active.’
Doctor Francesco Zaccardi, co-lead author on the study, said: ‘This study adds to the evidence that habitual daily physical activity is a powerful determinant of health and longevity.
‘Our hope is that these findings will lead to public health messaging promoting the importance of small regular additions of moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity in adults who are currently inactive.
-Daily Mail.uk
