Under the epidemic, working and studying at home have become the norm, and opportunities to go out for fitness and walking have been greatly reduced. Many friends unconsciously turn on the sedentary mode: sitting on the computer, sitting on the mobile phone, sitting on the Internet shopping…
The “American Heart Association” published Stroke published a study in 2021: People under the age of 60 with low physical activity, sedentary time ≥ 8 hours a day, the risk of stroke is four times higher than that of people with high physical activity!
We all know that sitting for a long time is not good for health. There will always be elders in the family group to forward various health care articles. Among them, “10,000 steps a day” is One of the oldest and most widely circulated “health secrets” has become a daily health goal for many people.
However, discussions about healthy step count have been inconclusive for years and often sparked controversy among family groups.
Is “ten thousand steps a day” really reliable?
Does the more you walk, the longer you live?
What is the optimal number of steps per day?
Does walking speed affect the effect?
Are all people fit for walking?
On March 1, 2022, after years of research by scientists in the field of health, the answers to these questions were finally revealed.
A large-scale study published in the authoritative medical journal “The Lancet-Public Health” confirmed that more walking is indeed closely related to longevity Related, people of different age groups have different recommended steps.
Source: < “The Lancet Public Health” p>
Is “ten thousand steps a day” really reliable?
This study, from the Steps for Health Collaborative, was designed to investigate the relationship between daily steps taken and mortality in adults.
The research team conducted a meta-analysis of 15 relevant studies from four continents, covering nearly 50,000 people, with an average follow-up time of 7 The researchers divided the participants into four groups based on their average number of steps per day, with the following median number of steps per day for each group:
Low step array: about 3500 steps.
Next low step array: about 5800 steps. span>
The next highest step array: about 7800 steps.
high Step array: about 10900 steps.
After excluding age, gender, race, chronic diseases, etc. that may affect life expectancy , the researchers found that groups with higher daily steps had a 40% to 53% lower risk of death compared with the low-step group.
From this point of view, insisting on walking is indeed beneficial to our health, but how much is appropriate to walk every day? Does it have to be 10,000 steps? p>
Source: Image Worm Creative
Will you live longer?
The health benefits of walking have a ‘ceiling effect’, the study found.
In other words, after reaching the upper limit of healthy steps (10,000 steps for 18-60 years old, and 8,000 steps for people over 60 years old), walking can prevent death.The benefits will not increase.
As to why the elderly need fewer steps, the researchers analyzed that it may be related to the elderly’s daily mobility, poor aerobic exercise ability, exercise The effect on the body is greater, so older adults can experience similar health improvements as adults with less physical activity.
What is the best number of steps per day?
Before answering this question, one thing must be clear: The so-called optimal number of steps is not an exact number, but an interval Scope. Within the optimal steps range, the lowest number is called the lower limit of healthy steps, and the highest number is called the upper limit of healthy steps.
Further analysis shows that the range of optimal steps is different for different age groups:
Adults aged 18-60 who walk 8,000-10,000 steps a day have the lowest risk of death.
Older people over 60 years old who walk 6000-8000 steps a day have the lowest risk of death.
In other words, for health and longevity, 8,000 steps a day for adults and 6,000 steps a day for seniors is enough. Therefore, you don’t need to pursue deliberately, you must go 10,000 steps to achieve Consummation.
The relationship between daily steps and mortality at different ages