It can lower the risk of cardiovascular disease by 25%, cancer by 6%, type-2 diabetes by 14%, dementia by 38%, depression by 22% and falls by 28%, said the study, which analysed data from more than 160,000 adults. The study said all-cause mortality can go down by as much as 47%.
The study also revealed that even modest step counts of around 4,000 a day are linked to better health compared with very low activity, described as around 2,000 steps a day.
For some health conditions, such as heart disease, benefits continued to increase beyond 7,000 steps, but for most conditions, the benefits tended to level off, it said.
The Lancet said that unlike earlier studies which mostly focused on heart health or overall death rates, this research is the first to comprehensively examine how taking more steps per day can reduce the risk of several different health outcomes.
The authors of the study highlighted that 7,000 steps a day may be a more realistic target than the current unofficial target of 10,000 steps a day, particularly for those who are less active, suggesting that this target can still provide significant improvements in health.The systematic review included 57 studies, of which 31 were included in meta-analyses, providing the most comprehensive evidence to date of the association between the number of daily steps and a wide range of health outcomes.The authors, however, cautioned that the evidence for health benefits for most conditions, such as cancer and dementia, is supported by a small number of studies, meaning there is a low level of certainty for those results, and many of the studies included did not account for some confounding factors, like age or frailty, that could bias the findings, it said.
Overall, the systematic searches for eight outcomes yielded 57 studies from 35 cohorts. Of the 57 studies, 21 (37%) were based on participants in the US, followed by the UK (21%) and Japan 14%. Thirty-two (56%) studies were based on general adult samples and the rest on older adults (mean age ≥65 years).
According to the Lancet, 12 studies (21%) were done among populations with a condition, disability, or risk factor, while 44 studies (77%) included step measures based on accelerometers, 11 (19%) were based on pedometers, and two (4%) used other devices such as fitness trackers.
The authors said their study underscores the value of using daily step counts as a straightforward way to measure physical activity. They suggested these results could help shape future public health guidelines and recommendations, encouraging more people to track their steps as a practical way to improve health.
