Sitting Too Much? Every Step Counts, Says Study
Walking more than 2,200 steps a day could reduce our risk of heart disease and early death, even if we spend the rest of the day sitting down.
That's according to a study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.
The study added that the popular idea of "10,000 steps per day" is still the magic number — it's linked to the lowest risk of early death and heart disease.
Researchers looked at data from more than 72,000 people in the UK, with an average age of 61.
Previous studies have linked time spent sitting with early death and heart disease, and walking is known to decrease these risks.
So the research team wanted to find out if walking could offset the health risks of spending a lot of time sitting.
The study participants wore a device on their wrist for seven days. The device was able to record the steps they took and the amount of time they spent sitting or lying down while they were awake.
They were then tracked for around seven years afterward. During this time, 1,633 participants died, and almost 6,200 had cardiovascular problems like heart attacks and strokes.
The study found that taking between 9,000 and 10,500 steps per day reduced the risk of early death by 39%, and reduced the risk of cardiovascular disease by 21%.
That's even if people were spending a lot of time sitting.
Every step above 2,200 per day was also shown to decrease health risks, but more walking and less sitting was still better.
One of the researchers, Matthew Ahmadi, who led the study, said the results show that "all movement matters," and anyone who has to spend a lot of time sitting should increase the number of steps they take.
