The latest research finds that walking about 10,000 steps a day can offset the harm of sitting for a long time and reduce the risk of death

Sitting for a long time is one of the most common lifestyles in today's society and a risk factor for many health conditions. The World Health Organization has long listed sitting as one of the top ten causes of death, second only to smoking. Early studies have shown that sitting for a long time increases the risk of heart disease, diabetes, depression, etc.

Sitting for long periods of time increases the risk of 12 diseases. According to a study conducted by researchers from Tianjin Medical University in a Lancet journal, sitting for more than six hours a day is associated with a high risk of 12 diseases, including ischemic heart disease, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, chronic kidney disease, chronic liver disease, thyroid disease, depression, migraine, gout, rheumatoid arthritis, and diverticular disease.

It is well known that physical activity and health are positively correlated, and increasing the number of steps per day has a protective effect on health. However, it is unclear whether sedentary time affects the association between daily step count and all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease morbidity.

Recently, researchers from the University of Sydney in Australia published a research paper titled "Do the associations of daily steps with mortality and incident cardiovascular disease differ by sedentary time levels? A device-based cohort study" in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

Studies show that when the number of steps per day exceeds 2,200, the risk of death and cardiovascular disease can be reduced; when the number of steps per day reaches 9,000-10,500, the risk of death is lowest regardless of how long you sit.

This suggests that the optimal daily step count for reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and death is 9,000-10,500 steps, regardless of the length of sedentary time.

In this study, researchers analyzed 72,174 participants in the UK Biobank database, with an average age of 61 years old and 58% women. The participants' daily steps and sedentary time were recorded by wearing accelerometers, and the impact of sedentary time on daily steps and the risk of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease was analyzed.

Overall, participants walked an average of 6,222 steps per day and sat for 10.6 hours. Participants were divided into high and low levels based on the sitting time: more than 10.5 hours per day and less than 10.5 hours per day.

During a median follow-up of 7 years, 1,633 deaths and 6,190 cardiovascular events were recorded.

The study found that as sedentary time increases, all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease incidence increase significantly, while increasing daily steps can reduce the risk of death and cardiovascular disease.

Analysis of all-cause mortality found that among participants with a sedentary time of more than 10.5 hours, the risk of death could be reduced when walking more than 2,200 steps a day. The risk of death was lowest when walking 9,000 steps a day, with a 39% reduction in the risk of death.

Among participants who sat for less than 10.5 hours, the risk of death was lowest when they walked 10,300 steps a day, with a 31% reduction in risk of death.

Association between all-cause mortality and sedentary time and steps

An analysis of the incidence of cardiovascular disease found that among participants who sat for more than 10.5 hours, walking more than 2,200 steps a day could reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. The risk of cardiovascular disease was lowest when walking 9,700 steps a day, with a 21% reduction in the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Among participants who sat for less than 10.5 hours, the risk of cardiovascular disease was lowest when they walked 9,800 steps a day, with a 29% reduction in cardiovascular disease risk.

Relationship between cardiovascular disease and sedentary time and steps

In addition, regardless of the length of time you sit, even if you walk 4,000-4,500 steps a day, you can get about 50% of the benefits of the optimal number of steps.

It is worth mentioning that if the number of steps per day is the same, people who sit for a shorter period of time have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease than those who sit for a longer period of time.

Researchers said that regardless of the length of time spent sitting, walking more than 2,200 steps a day can reduce the risk of death and cardiovascular disease. The optimal daily number of steps is 9,000-10,500 steps.

Still, the researchers stressed that this was an observational study, so it cannot establish cause and effect.

In short, every step counts, and every step you take is a step towards better health. Regardless of how long you sit, the optimal number of steps per day to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and death is 9,000-10,500 steps.