Study: Thousands of lives could be saved if we did this every day

A new study says over 110,000 deaths a year could be prevented by doing something very simple: building 10 minutes of exercise into your day.

More specifically, the study focused on people over 40 and how collective health would benefit if they added 10 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity to their lives.

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Photo by Jad Limcaco via Unsplash

The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. It then studied the activity levels of over 5,000 participants aged between 40 and 85, while also tracking their death rates. While the number of deaths prevented is an estimate, the study showed that the more people exercised, the better their chances of living longer.

“We know exercise is good for us. This study provides additional evidence of the benefits at the population level: If all adults in the United States (over 40) exercised just a little bit more each day, a large number of deaths could be prevented each year,” says study author Pedro Saint-Maurice to CNN.

While most studies focus on showing the bare minimum of exercise per day, they tend to be demoralizing for a large group of people who may not have the time or mentality to exercise four days a week. These types of studies provide achievable goals that everyone can incorporate into their daily lives to improve their quality of life and help communities live longer, healthier lives.

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Ten minutes of exercise is not a big commitment; You can do this by setting a timer and walking up and down the stairs, going for a walk, or doing body weights at home. New studies and researchers are taking new approaches to fitness, changing the definition of what it means and welcoming more people to a healthier lifestyle that’s comfortable over the long term.