Walk... Walk...and Walk...
The
Easiest Way To Live Longer
Did you know that every minute we walk can extend our
life by 1.5 to 2 minutes? In addition, many studies show that people who walk
regularly live longer, weigh less, have lower blood pressure, and enjoy better
overall health than non-walkers.
Here’s a look at ten benefits of walking.
Walking Increases Your Lifespan
Walking more than an hour a day improves life
expectancy significantly. Surprisingly, their lifetime medical costs did not
increase—even though they lived longer.
“An increase in walking time at the population
level would bring about a tremendous change in people’s health and medical
cost,” the study authors wrote.
Walking Wards Off Diabetes
Just thirty minutes of walking a day can prevent
diseases such as type 2 diabetes, a 2002 study looking at both overweight and
average weight men and women in a population at high risk for the disease
showed.
If you already have diabetes, walking is helpful
for you, too. A mile or more daily cuts your risk of death from all causes
in half, according to a 2007 study.
Walking Keeps Your Mind Sharp
Walking 72 blocks a week (around six to nine miles)
helps increase grey matter, which in turn lowers the risk of suffering from
cognitive impairment—or trouble with concentration, memory and thought, according to a study which
looked at 299 seniors over a nine-year period.
Furthermore, walking five miles per week can provide some protection to
the memory and learning areas of the brains of those already suffering from
Alzheimer’s disease or mild cognitive impairment, and lead to a slower decline
in memory loss.
Common Symptoms of Alzheimer's Disease
Walking Helps Lower Blood
Pressure
Walking just 30 minutes a day, three to five days a
week—even when the 30 minutes are broken into three ten-minute increments—has been found to
significantly lower blood pressure.
Walking is Great for Bone Health
Putting one foot in front of the other for about a
mile a day led to improved bone density in post-menopausal women, and slowed
the rate of bone loss from the legs, according to a 1994 study. “It takes walkers four to seven years
longer to reach the point of very low bone density, study leader Dr. Krall told the New York Times.
Walking Cuts the Risk of Stroke
Walking about 12.5 miles a week or more cut the
risk of stroke in half, according to a study looking at over 11,000 Harvard University
alumni with an average age of 58.
Walking Improves Your Mood
If you’re feeling down in the dumps, walking is a
quick and easy solution. Just thirty minutes on a treadmill reduces feelings of
tension and depression, according to research published in the British Journal of
Sports Medicine. In fact, the study found that walking lifted moods more
quickly than anti-depressants did (and with fewer side effects). And the more people walk, the better their mood and
energy.
Walking Torches Calories
Just 20 minutes of walking a day will burn 7 pounds
a year. The effects are even more dramatic when you add in some dietary
changes as well.
23 Diet Plans Reviewed: Do They Work?
Walking Improves Insomnia
Having trouble sleeping at night? Try taking a
brisk 45-minute walk in the morning five days a week, and your sleep may
improve significantly, according to research from the Fred
Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, which looked at women from the
age of 50-74. (Walking in the evening, however, sometimes has the opposite
effect—so keep an eye on when you’re exercising and what your sleep patterns
are.)
Walking is Good for the Heart
Women who took brisk walks for three or more hours
per week reduced their risk of heart disease by 30-40 percent. A different study showed that walking can cut the
risk of coronary heart disease in half for men between the ages of 71 and 93.
edited from an article from Health Care mag written by Lisa Collier
p/s ...let's start to make walking a routine exercise...and let the car/ bike rest!!! ;-D
