It seems your grandmother was right after all — if you want to live a longer and healthier life, be sure to exercise.
A new study by researchers at the U.S. National Cancer Institute found that staying physically active after age 40 seems to increase your lifespan between two and seven years. And the more you exercise, the longer your life expectancy — regardless of your weight.
“There is dose-response relationship between physical activity and life expectancy,” said investigator Steven Moore, a National Cancer Institute research fellow. “If you don’t currently do any physical activity, doing just a few minutes of physical activity a day can result in a notable increase in life expectancy.”
Exercise may extend life by helping to prevent often fatal diseases, Moore said, adding that other studies have linked physical activity to a lower risk for heart disease and several cancers.
The bottom line, he said: “Some physical activity is good, more is better.”
For the study, published online Nov. 6 in the journal PLoS Medicine, Moore and his colleagues pooled data from six previously published studies that included more than 650,000 people. Using this data, the researchers were able to calculate the years of life gained after age 40 from various levels of physical activity.
09/11/2012 : By Steven Reinberg / Health Magazine.
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