Walking 9,800 steps a day reduces dementia risk by 50%

In a recent study published in Department of Neurology, JAMAresearchers evaluated the association between the number and intensity of steps taken per day and the incidence of dementia in adults living in the United Kingdom (UK).

Step counting is a popular approach for providing physical activity (PA) goals to the general public. Higher steps, especially when performed at increased intensity, may reduce the risk of cancer, cardiovascular mortality, and diabetes. Additionally, step-based recommendations are easy to communicate, interpret, measure, and remember, making them ideal for developing guidelines for preventing dementia. However, the relationship between the number of steps taken each day and the incidence of dementia is unknown.

study: Associations between daily steps and intensity and dementia in 78,430 adults living in the UKImage credit: alexei_tm / Shutterstock

About research

In this study, researchers investigated the number of steps needed to prevent dementia in UK adults and the optimal number of steps.

Data are from a UK Biobank (UKBB) prospective cohort study conducted between February 2013 and December 2015, with a follow-up assessment of 7 years. Participants were asked to wear an accelerometer on their dominant wrist throughout the day to measure PA.

Adults who wore accelerometers on their wrists and provided accelerometer data for at least three weekdays and one weekend day were included in the analysis. Dementia confirmation was based on multiple registry data and was conducted until October 2021. Study exposure was her accelerometer-monitored steps per day, consisting of incidental and intentional steps <40 steps/min and >40 steps/min, respectively.

In addition, the peak 30 min intensity [i.e., average steps/minute accelerometer-reported for the highest 30 (but may not be consecutive) minutes per day]The main study findings and measurements were obtained through links with primary care or inpatient admission records, or reported as a contributing or underlying cause of death in the death record, fatal or non-fatal It was a dementia incident.

Gender, age, ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status, education, alcohol consumption, smoking, vegetable and fruit intake, family history of cancer and cardiovascular disease, medications, days of active accelerometer wear, accelerometer Data were adjusted for sleep monitored in . Spline Cox regression modeling was used for analysis and hazard ratios (HR) were calculated.

Additionally, a sensitivity analysis was performed to minimize the possibility of reverse causation, participants with a diagnosis of dementia within the first 2 years of follow-up were excluded, and data were aggregated to glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c). , were adjusted for cholesterol, mean arterial pressure, and body mass index (BMI) (BMI).

result

In total, 103,684 adults were identified with available wrist accelerometer data, of whom 23,638 were excluded due to: (i) invalid accelerometer data (n=12,068), (ii) cancer. , dementia, or cardiovascular health problems were prevalent (n=9,636), (iii) valid accelerometer data for <3 weekdays and 1 weekend (n=1,934). As a result, 78,430 adults with complete covariate data were included in the final analysis.

The mean age of the included cohort was 61 years, the majority (55%, n=43, 390 were female and the remaining 45% (n=35,040) were male. Of the participants, 97%, 0.8 %, 0.8%, 0.5%, and 1.1% were Caucasian, Black of mixed ethnicity, Black of mixed ethnicity, and Asian, respectively. A higher number of steps was observed in women.

Over 7 years, 866 participants were diagnosed with dementia (mean age 68 years, 480 men, 386 women, 98%, 0.7%, 0.6%, 0.4%, 0.7% Caucasian, Black, Asian person, mixed ethnicity, unspecified) ethnicity, respectively). Non-linear associations were found between steps and daily intensity and incidence of dementia.

The optimal number of steps (dose) (i.e., the exposure at which the maximal reduction in dementia risk was found) and the minimum dose (i.e., the exposure at which the dementia risk was 50% lower than the maximal risk reduction) were 9,826 steps and 9,826 steps, respectively. 3,826 steps with corresponding HR values ​​of 0.5 and 0.8.

The optimal incidental and intentional intensity doses were 3,677 and 6,315 steps, respectively, with corresponding HR values ​​of 0.6 and 0.4. The optimal dose for 30-minute peak intensity was 112 steps per minute with an HR value of 0.4. The results remained unchanged after sensitivity analysis.

Overall, the study results showed that more steps were associated with a lower risk of developing dementia. Walking at a higher intensity of 9,800 steps daily is the best way to reduce your risk of dementia. The authors conclude that this study is the first of its kind and that understanding the association between daily step count and dementia incidence will help determine optimal stepping volume and intensity for dementia prevention. I believe it is essential to