We all know that exercise is healthy, but how much sense does it make to start once you’ve passed 70, you may wonder. So it makes a lot of sense, it turns out new research.
Just 20 minutes of moderately intensive exercise – brisk walking, for example – has already been shown to have a beneficial effect for 70-year-olds: they run a significantly lower risk of heart disease.
Researchers followed a group of over-65s, who had undergone extensive physical examinations between 1995 and 1997, until the end of 2018. They were checked in between. Those who only started moving around 75 or 80 did not benefit much from this, but those who started earlier did.
The following applies: the younger you start exercising, the better. “In non-communicable diseases that develop over a long period of time, the effect of risk or protective factors also extends over a longer period of time,” explains researcher Claudio Amidei to Scientias.nl. “So the sooner you start a protective activity – such as exercise – the more likely it is that it will have a beneficial effect on your health.”
The exercise mainly prevents heart disease, but also reduces the risk of some cancers and improves blood sugar control. So what kind of exercise is best for you? “In our analyses, we focused on moderate to vigorous physical activity,” said Amidei. “This definition includes a wide range of exercises, such as brisk walking, tennis and jogging, as well as other types of activities such as gardening and household chores.”
