Big data analysis of "The Lancet" sub-issue: Step count and health are the most obvious

While regular physical activity is known to have many health benefits, physical inactivity and sedentary behaviors are still common globally

There is growing evidence that being sedentary makes people prone to gaining weight and increases the risk of diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease

A recent study published in The Lancet Healthy Longevity found that higher physical activity and less sedentary behavior were strongly associated with better lower-body muscle strength, which was associated with falls and upper-body muscle strength.

Screenshot source: The Lancet Healthy Longevity

The review included 6 systematic reviews involving a total of 1017 studies with participants aged 60 to 92 years

Metrics reflecting physical activity included number of steps, number of activities, overall duration of physical activity, duration of moderate to vigorous physical activity, duration of light physical activity, and duration of sedentary periods

Clinical outcomes include mortality, frailty (eg, fatigue, illness, and weight loss), overall cognitive function, fear of falls, falls, and fractures, muscular endurance, and muscle strength (eg, upper extremity muscle strength, lower extremity muscle strength, and knee extension, etc.

The results of the analysis found that step count was the strongest factor associated with various clinical outcomes compared to other measures of physical activity: every 1000 steps increase in step count was associated with a 0.

The paper points out that the number of steps represents bipedal movement, which is a basic component of physical activity in our daily life

Compared with sedentary periods, more steps and moderate to vigorous physical activity contributed more to total physical activity; more steps were also associated with a higher proportion of time spent in low-intensity physical activity

In addition to the number of steps, other factors strongly associated with clinical outcome, in order of strength of association, were: moderate to vigorous physical activity, total physical activity, number of activities, light physical activity, and sedentary behavior

The above results also reiterate that increasing the intensity of activity as much as possible is more beneficial to health

Of course, these results also underscore that any type of physical activity is associated with better health, and that longer durations and higher intensity of exercise can produce good results

Since disabilities and chronic diseases are so common in older age groups, this may limit their physical activity

The paper concludes: Emphasizing more walking is beneficial because step count has shown the greatest impact on various clinical outcomes related to the musculoskeletal system

References

[1] Ramsey, KA, Meskers, CG, & Maier, AB (2021).