HOW TO LIVE FOR LONGER
Brisk exercise slashes risk of an early death
REGULAR vigorous exercise is the simple way to achieve a long and disease- free life, a study has found.
Tough workouts can slash the risk of an early death by as much as 13 per cent.
Health experts say the benefits of highintensity activities that make the heart race, such as running or playing sport, are the best way to fight deadly cancer, diabetes and high blood pressure.
Yet working up a sweat while doing the gardening, housework or even a brisk walk in the park could also add years to your life.
Scientists have found that the risk of mortality among those who took some form of strenuous activity was between nine and 13 per cent lower than those who abstained.
And the greater the exercise the bigger the boost to all- round health, especially for men.
Their exhaustive research is the clearest sign yet that exercise – in whatever form – is the elixir of life.
Dr Klaus Gebel, who led the study, said: “The benefits of vigorous activity applied to men and
women of all ages and were independent of the total amount of time spent being active. The results indicate that whether or not you are obese, and whether or not you have heart disease or diabetes, if you can manage some vigorous activity it could offer significant benefits for longevity.”
The advice comes in the wake of recent reports highlighting how Britain has some of the unhealthiest eating habits in the world.
Millions of couch potatoes are heading for an early grave because our diets are full of processed, cholesterol and salt- laden food and sugar- sweetened drinks.
Current guidelines suggest people should do 150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise every week – but three in four people fail to achieve this.
Latest figures show the UK’s obesity epidemic costs the NHS £ 7billion a year.
Britain’s obesity rate was 2.7 per cent in 1972 but has rocketed to 25 per cent of adults today due to our sedentary lifestyles and over- reliance on carbohydrate- heavy foods like pizza, white bread and pasta.
Dr Ian Campbell, one of Britain’s leading health and obesity experts, said: “Being physically active is the best way to prevent ill health.
“We need to accept that some effort is needed and be prepared to break into a sweat but the form of exercise isn’t too important – gardening, housework, it all counts.
“The NHS is struggling to cope with an ever- increasing demand. If we improved our diet and led more active lives we would drastically improve the health of the nation and help save the NHS. The alternative is hardly worth thinking about. Today’s poor diet is tomorrow’s ill health because we are what we eat. The message is clear – take every opportunity to get out and about and be busy.”
In the exercise study the researchers in Queensland, Australia, followed 204,542 men and women aged over 45 who said none of their physical activity was vigor- ous and those who reported up to 30 per cent or more was.
Their six- year study found the mortality rate among those who worked up a sweat during workouts was nine per cent lower than those who reported no vigorous activity.
For those whose exercise regimes were vigorous more than 30 per cent of the time the rate was reduced by 13 per cent.
Dr Gebel, from James Cook University’s Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention and whose study was published in JAMA Internal Medicine, added: “Our research indicates that even small amounts of vigorous activity could help reduce your risk of early death.
“Previous studies indicate that interval training, with short bursts of vigorous effort, is often manageable for older people, including those who are overweight or obese.”
Jim McKenna, professor of physical activity and health at Leeds Beckett University, said: “There is no question that some exercise is better than nothing.
“But the more intensive the activity the less likely people will come back to it, so the question is how do we get people to do some – and then those who do some to do a bit more?
“Unfortunately, no more than one in five people sustain regular exercise. This group are the main target for public health efforts to promote more physical activity.”