Adding 20 minutes of daily physical activity can prevent hospitalization

• A new study shows that just 20 minutes of exercise a day may lower your risk of future hospitalization.
• Researchers found this association to be associated with nine health conditions.
• Experts give tips on how to be more active.

We all know that exercise is important for overall health. for your mental healthNow, new research shows that adding 20 minutes of exercise to your day may reduce your chances of future hospitalization for a serious medical condition.

Research published in JAMA network open, used data from 81,717 UK Biobank participants aged 42–78 years. Participants wore accelerometers, a type of accelerometer. fitness tracker, 1 week (June 1, 2013 to December 23, 2015), and the researchers followed for 7 years. Participants with a history of a condition were excluded from analysis specific to that condition. Therefore, those who already had gallbladder disease were excluded from the analysis for that particular condition.

Time spent in sedentary activities (such as driving or watching TV), light physical activity (such as cooking or self-care), moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (such as walking the dog or jogging), and sleeping can be measured using the wearable camera. Time-use diaries of 152 individuals with estimated use and normal living conditions.

After assessing participants’ activity levels, researchers used modeling techniques to replace sedentary behavior with 20 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. They found that just 20 minutes of additional physical activity could significantly reduce the likelihood of future hospitalizations.

Furthering the researchers’ findings, higher levels of physical activity were associated with lower hospitalization risks for nine conditions: Urinary-tract infection, Diabetes (both type 1 and type 2), venous thromboembolism, pneumoniaischemic stroke, iron deficiency anemia, diverticular disease, and colonic polyps. Increasing his physical activity by just 20 minutes a day led to a reduction in hospitalization, from his 3.8% for colonic polyps to 23% for diabetes.

Overall, these findings suggest that as little as 20 minutes of increased physical activity per day can effectively reduce the risk of hospitalization for a wide range of medical conditions.

Why does exercise help reduce the risk of hospitalization?

Increased exercise and physical activity can improve your overall ability to adapt to stressors and reduce frailty, says Dr. Johannes. It may reduce the risk of comorbidities that can complicate the disease, such as.” Reducing the risk of comorbidities is associated with less severe medical concerns such as urinary tract infections and pneumonia. hospitalization can be prevented as a result of this could mean that it is likely to be more treatable outside the hospital.

Exercise is associated with a lower risk of ischemic heart disease, so it is not surprising that exercise and physical activity are associated with a lower risk of hospitalization for stroke. Exercise also often improves diabetes management by making muscles more sensitive to insulin, so it’s not surprising that it’s associated with a lower risk of hospitalization for diabetes complications, he added.

However, Dr. Johannes remembers that some people who are more likely to be hospitalized with these particular conditions may have an underlying problem that could be attributed to a lack of physical activity. They explain that it is important to keep their medical condition, not the other way around.

How can I increase my physical activity?

This study includes walking From moderate to vigorous exercise, I think this is a great starting point. Jimmy Johannes, M.D., a pulmonologist and critical care specialist at MemorialCare Long Beach Medical Center. “In general, we recommend starting with 10 to 15 minutes of walking per day and gradually increasing the duration, intensity and number of days per week, two to three days per week.” For hard-to-integrate people, tracking steps with an activity tracker (such as a smartphone or watch) motivates people to stay active, for example by taking the stairs instead of the elevator. can do. add.

“We recommend walking at least 5,000 steps a day, and ideally 7,500 or more. But in general, something is better than nothing,” says Dr. Johannes. says.

Conclusion

Exercise can improve strength, balance, energy, mood, cognition and self-image, says Dr. Johannes. Regarding the findings of this new study, “I think this is more supporting evidence that increased physical activity is associated with improved health outcomes. It provides additional insight into associations with reduced hospitalization risk for a variety of conditions not typically associated with physical health, such as gallbladder disease, pneumonia,” he explains.

At least 150-300 minutes per week is known to reduce mortality by 30-40%. Megan Wasfi, MD, MPH, a sports cardiologist at Mass General Brigham. “Exercise helps improve blood pressure, blood cholesterol levels, weight control, type 2 diabetes dangerous. ”

Ultimately, higher levels of physical activity lead to better long-term health, lower hospitalization risks, and a higher likelihood of contracting a range of illnesses, Dr. Wasfy said.

Madeleine, preventionShe has a history of writing on health, coming from her experience as an editorial assistant at WebMD and her personal research at university. She graduated from the University of Michigan with degrees in biopsychology, cognition, and neuroscience. preventionsocial media platform.