To escape death and disease, take seven thousand steps a day

Goal of the 10,000 is unrealistic: 7,000 steps arrive at almost half the risk of death and up to 4,000 already bring significant health benefits.

To walk seven thousand steps a day It can reduce the risk of chronic diseases, losing mental and death capabilities, a study released on Wednesday in the scientific journal.

The work of researchers, many of educational and research establishments in Australia, is based on data from over 160,000 adults and allowed the discovery that even a goal of 4,000 daily stepsCompared to a low average of 2,000, it can bring significant health benefits.

The ideal is to complete 7,000 steps per daya more realistic goal than the current 10,000 recommended, underline the authors.

While previous works focused on the impact of walking, moderate physical activity, heart health or general mortality rates, it analyzed, for the first time, its effects on different health conditions.

According to the study, by increasing from 2,000 to 7,000 steps, the equivalent of five kilometersAlmost half (47%) the risk of premature death for all causes is reduced, as well as the risk of cardiovascular disease (25%), cancer (6%), type 2 diabetes (14%), dementia (38%), depression (22%) and falls (28%).

“You don’t have to take 10,000 steps a day to have great health benefits”, Said Paddy Dempsey, co-author of the study and medical researcher at Cambridge University, to France-Presse agency, adding that “the greatest gains occur at 7,000 steps from which they tend to stabilize.”

For Dempsey, those who can already take 10,000 steps or more should continue to do so and those who have difficulty giving 7,000, which represents about an hour of walking, “should not be discouraged.”

According to the researcher, public health messages should stop aiming at “perfection” and stress that even a small increase in physical activity can make a big difference.

“If only 2,000 to 3,000 steps a day, try adding 1,000: it’s only 10 to 15 minutes of walking through the day,” he advised.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week.