Cut cancer and stroke risk with 11-minute exercise that’s backed by scientists

When it comes to exercise, it’s believed that the more time you exercise, the better your results, but research shows that a small amount is enough to reduce your risk of premature death.

The NHS recommends that adults do 150 minutes of moderate exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise every week. You might think that working out is pointless if you don’t break a sweat, but she says even 11 minutes of exercise is better than doing nothing at all.

Scientists at the University of Cambridge say at least half the recommended amount of physical activity could avoid one in 10 premature deaths. The survey results are British Journal of Sports Medicine Highlight the benefits that small amounts of exercise, such as a brisk walk, can have on your overall health.

Through extensive data analysis of published evidence, academics from the Medical Research Council (MRC) Epidemiology Unit at the University of Cambridge determined how much physical activity has a positive impact on several chronic diseases.

Dr Soren Brage from the MRC Epidemiology Unit said: “If you’re a person for whom the idea of ​​doing 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity a week is a little daunting, our findings should come as good news. It’s better to do some physical activity than none at all. It would be better to do so.

“This is also a good place to start. Once you find that 75 minutes a week is manageable, you can gradually increase to the full recommended amount.”

What does moderate-intensity physical activity refer to?

Moderate-intensity physical activity increases your heart rate and makes you breathe faster, but it is possible to talk during the activity.

Examples include:

• brisk walk
• dancing
• riding a bicycle
• playing tennis
• hiking

Scientists found that outside of work-related physical activity, two in three people reported activity levels of less than 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity per week, and fewer than one in 10 were able to be active for more than 300 minutes. I discovered something.

People who did at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week saw only a modest benefit in reducing their risk of illness and early death, but even half that amount showed significant improvements. Ta.

75 minutes of moderate-intensity activity per week reduced the risk of early death by 23%. The same amount was enough to reduce the risk of developing cardiovascular disease by 17% and the risk of cancer by 7%.

The researchers calculated that about one in six people, or 16%, could be prevented from dying prematurely if everyone in the study got at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week. One in nine (11%) cases of cardiovascular disease and one in 20 (5%) cases of cancer would be prevented.

But even if everyone continued the same physical activity for at least 75 minutes, this could prevent about one in ten to 10 percent of premature deaths. Five percent of cardiovascular diseases, or one in 20, and almost one in 30, or 3 percent, cancer cases would be prevented.

To reach these conclusions, the scholars reviewed results reported in 196 peer-reviewed papers involving more than 30 million participants from 94 large study cohorts. This led researchers to conduct the largest-ever analysis of the association between physical activity levels and risk of heart disease, cancer, and early death.

For those who aren’t used to exercising regularly, the good news is that you can incorporate some amount of physical activity into your daily routine.

Dr Leandro Garcia from Queen’s University Belfast says: ‘Moderate activity doesn’t have to include what we normally think of as exercise, such as playing sports or running. In some cases, changing a few habits is enough. In some cases,” he said.

“For example, try walking or biking to work or study instead of driving, or actively playing with your children or grandchildren. Do activities that you enjoy and that are easy to incorporate into your weekly routine. is a great way to become more active.”

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