People who walk 7 000 steps a day have a dramatically lower risk of a broad range of serious health problems, the largest review of the evidence yet said Thursday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The most widely promoted target for people tracking their number of steps is 10 000 – but that figure reportedly originally came from a 1960s marketing campaign for a Japanese pedometer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To find a more scientific target, an international team of researchers sifted through 57 previous studies that covered 160 000 people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The results published in the Lancet Public Health journal found that walking 7 000 steps a day nearly halved people’s risk of early death from all causes, compared to 2 000 steps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The study also looked into health problems not previously covered by research into step counts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Walking 7 000 steps a day was linked to people’s risk of dementia falling by 38 percent, depression dropping 22 percent and diabetes decreasing 14 percent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was also associated with lower rates of cancer and falls, though the researchers warned this was based on less evidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“You don’t need to hit 10 000 steps a day to get major health benefits,” Paddy Dempsey, a study co-author and medical researcher at Cambridge University, said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The biggest gains happen before 7 000 steps, and then benefits tend to level off,” he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While people’s speeds vary widely, 7 000 steps adds up to roughly an hour of walking throughout the day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dempsey emphasised that people already managing 10 000 or more steps should keep it up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But he had a message for people who might find 7 000 steps daunting: “don’t be discouraged”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“If you’re only getting 2 000\u20133 000 steps a day, aim to add an extra 1 000 steps. That’s just 10\u201315 minutes of light walking spread across the day,” he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Andrew Scott, a researcher at the University of Portsmouth not involved in the study, said that “it demonstrates that overall more is always better”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“People should not focus too much on the numbers, particularly on days where activity is limited,” he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The World Health Organization recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate to intense physical activity a week. Nearly a third of people worldwide do not reach this target, according to the WHO.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
People who walk 7 000 steps a day have a dramatically lower risk of a broad range of serious health problems, the largest review of the evidence yet said Thursday. 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