NEW YORK (Dispatches) -- Taking more steps per day, either all at once or in shorter spurts, may help you live longer, according to research by the American Heart Association .
The researchers divided the total number of steps for each study participant into two groups: 1) 10 minutes or longer bouts of walking with few interruptions; and 2) short spurts of walking during regular daily activities such as housework, taking the stairs, or walking to or from a car. In follow-up, they tracked deaths from any cause for an average of six years, through December 31, 2019.
Researchers found that overall, 804 deaths occurred during the entire study period of 2011-2019. They learned that Study participants who took more steps in short spurts lived longer, regardless of how many steps they had in longer, uninterrupted bouts. The benefits leveled off at about 4,500 steps per day in short spurts. They also found that Compared to no daily steps, each initial increase of 1,000 steps per day was associated with a 28% decrease in death during the follow-up period and that A 32% decrease in death was noted in participants who took more than 2,000 steps daily in uninterrupted bouts.