Sedentary People Have a Sevenfold Higher Stroke Risk Than Those Who Exercise Moderately
A recent study published in Stroke, the monthly journal of the American Heart Association, points out that people who sit for more than eight hours a day and are physically inactive have a sevenfold higher risk of stroke than those who sit for less than four hours and exercise for at least ten minutes a day.
This epidemiological study tracked the health status and lifestyle information of 143,000 adults with no prior history of stroke, cancer, or heart disease, recording their daily time spent sitting at work and during leisure (watching TV, using the computer, reading, playing cards, etc.). All participants were over forty years old, and the follow-up lasted 9.4 years. During those 9.4 years, 2,965 strokes occurred among the group, 90% of them ischemic strokes, with the overwhelmingly sedentary accounting for the great majority.
The researchers believe that prolonged inactivity obstructs the metabolism of glucose and lipids and the flow of blood, and increases inflammation in the body. Over time, these changes may adversely affect the blood vessels, raising the risk of heart attack and stroke.
Stroke has high rates of disability and death and imposes enormous psychological distress and economic burden on patients and their families. Medical experts therefore recommend that people maintain at least ten minutes of moderate-or-higher intensity exercise every day. What counts as moderate-or-higher intensity? Any exercise that makes you sweat counts. Push-ups, running, ball games, cycling, mountain climbing, and swimming all fall into the moderate-or-higher category.
Moderate exercise has many health benefits; people should guarantee at least 150 minutes of exercise per week. A sedentary lifestyle not only raises stroke risk but also accumulates abdominal fat and increases the risk of cancer and diabetes. Some studies also show that middle-aged people who keep exercising and read popular science in moderation have a greatly reduced risk of dementia in old age.
Mental workers generally lack exercise and have high obesity rates, so many of them are plagued in midlife by chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's. If they had devoted some of their time to exercise when young, their lives would be longer and their quality of life far higher.
Childhood is the best time to form exercise habits; many people who dislike exercise from childhood remain uninterested in exercise for life. Parents must therefore cultivate their children's interest in exercise during childhood and not sacrifice their children's long-term future for the sake of school advancement.
People need to keep exercising over the long term to benefit. The body gradually declines after forty; those who begin exercising before forty have better self-care ability, more cheerful emotions, and a higher quality of life in middle and old age than those who start only after forty.
No matter how busy work and study may be, one must make time for exercise and physical labor. If we do not take care of our bodies, we will not stay healthy.