The use of activity bracelets or smartwatches has made us very aware of the number of steps we take each day. The truth is that the oft-repeated mantra of 10,000 designated healthy steps a day grew out of a decades-old marketing campaign for a Japanese pedometer, with no science to back up its actual impact on health. A study from the University of Massachusetts Amherst (USA) has now found that there could be benefits even by walking a little less a day, especially for older people.
The research is a meta-analysis of 15 studies that includes almost 50,000 people from four continents. The results have indicated that those over 60 could reduce their risk of dying prematurely by walking between 6,000 and 8,000 steps a day. A figure that should be between 8,000 and 10,000 steps if you wanted to have these benefits in those under that age.
The beneficial effects of walking were found regardless of step speed, so this study, published in The Lancet, is interesting as evidence that a measure as simple as taking those steps every day could help improve the quality of life and increase the longevity of the elderly.
Up to 53% lower risk of death
To reach these conclusions, the authors divided the participants of the 15 studies analyzed into four groups based on the average number of steps data. Thus, the group with the fewest steps walked 3,500 steps, the second 5,800, the third 7,800, and the fourth 10,900 steps each day.
Walking increases longevity, but there is no evidence that walking more than 8,000 steps in the elderly and 10,000 in adults has additional benefits
Among the three groups considered to be more active, there was a reduction in the risk of death that was between 40% and 53% less, compared to the group that was more sedentary or took fewer daily steps. However, no additional benefits were found beyond 8,000 steps per day in the elderly and 10,000 steps in adults.
“So what we saw was this incremental reduction in risk as steps increase, until it plateaus. The main takeaway is that there is plenty of evidence to suggest that moving even a little more is beneficial, particularly for those who do very little activity. More steps per day is better for your health. And the benefit in terms of mortality risk levels off between 6,000 and 8,000 for older adults and between 8,000 and 10,000 for younger adults”, explains Amanda Paluch, epidemiologist and director of the research.
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