People looking for ways to increase their life expectancy should start by exercising regularly, the Health Promotion Administration said yesterday, citing a study showing that exercising for 15 minutes per day can add an average of three years to a person’s life.
Health Promotion Administration Director-General Chiu Shu-ti (邱淑媞) made the remarks at a press conference in Taipei, as the agency released a new version of an exercise guidebook to promote the benefits of regular exercise.
“Most people have difficulty adhering to the widely adopted physical guidelines for adults, which require them to exercise for at least 30 minutes a day, five days a week,” Chiu said.
However, under the agency’s new exercise guideline, people only have to work out 15 minutes a day or 90 minutes a week to get healthier and see their risk of dying from a variety of diseases greatly reduced, Chiu said.
The new guidelines are based on the results of a 2011 study conducted by National Health Research Institutes researcher Wen Chi-pang (溫啟邦).
The study monitored the health of about 416,000 Taiwanese who participated in a standard medical screening program from 1996 to 2008 for an average of eight years, and who were divided into five groups: inactive, low, medium, high or very high exercise activity.
Compared with inactive participants, the study found that people in the low activity group who speed-walked 15 minutes every day over eight years enjoyed a three-year longer life expectancy, a 14 percent reduced risk of all-cause mortality and a 10 percent lowered chance of dying from cancer.
Those who exercised for an additional 15 minutes per day saw their lifespan further increased by one year, the study showed.
“Not only can people who keep doing this [speed-walking] everyday, for about 90 minutes a week, live three years longer, but they can also greatly lower their risk of dying or developing cancer, heart disease, diabetes and many other diseases,” Wen said.
However, Wen added that only physical activities that were done “on purpose” could achieve such effects.
Chiu said that exercise is a great equalizer because everyone receives the same health benefits regardless of their financial status.
“Those who are willing to exercise are rewarded with the most valuable asset — health. On the other hand, those who do not do so increase their chances of developing breast or colorectal cancer by 25 percent, diabetes by 27 percent and ischemic heart disease by 30 percent,” Chiu said.
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