How many steps to walk for the best health effects?

For people over 60 years, 6,000 to 8,000 steps per day is sufficient for health. — AFP

Is it really necessary to walk 10,000 steps every day to stay fit and healthy?

While it’s often mentioned as a kind of magic number, this figure is not completely based on scientific data.

It is, in fact, an example of a kind of marketing notion that became ultra commonplace, but isn’t exactly what the authorities in the matter prescribe.

The World Health Organization (WHO), for example, prefers to recommend the amount of time spent doing physical activity on a weekly basis, namely, between two-and-a-half and five hours of mode-rate endurance for people aged 18 to 64 years.

“The number of steps acquired per day is a simple measure of physical activity,” say the researchers who studied the subject.

Their results, published in The Lancet Public Health journal, were based on the analysis of 15 studies carried out throughout the world, specifying the effects of walking on health.

ALSO READ: Is 10,000 daily steps really the magic number for better health?

In this meta-analysis, 47,000 participants were divided into four categories:

• Those who walked 3,500 steps per day
• Those who walked 5,800 steps per day
• Those who walked 7,800 steps per day, and
• Those who walked 10,900 steps per day.

The results?

Up to age 60, walking between 8,000 and 10,000 steps per day is associated with “a progressively decreasing risk of mortality”.

For people over 60, 6,000 to 8,000 steps are sufficient.

To feel the effects, you don’t need to walk at a very quick pace.

The researchers point out that physical activity can help fight chronic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease and several cancers.

“Monitoring daily steps is more feasible than ever for the general public as fitness trackers and mobile devices have become increasingly popular,” they add. – AFP Relaxnews