Lack of Exercise More Deadly Than Obesity

According to a recent study from the University of Cambridge, lack of exercise is twice as deadly as obesity!

Lead study author, Ulf Ekelund, from the Epidemiological Research Unit at the University of Cambridge, estimated that eradicating physical inactivity would have twice as great a positive impact on early mortality as eradication of obesity. His data suggest that it is far more important to increase the number of people exercising than it is to reduce the number of people that are obese.

The good news is that the same exercise that decreases early mortality is the exercise that prevents us from gaining weight.

These data come from a 12-year-long study measuring height, weight, waist circumference and self-reported levels of physical activity in 334,000 men and women. The researches found that all it takes to decrease the incidence of premature death was for people to engage in a moderate amount of physical activity (a moderately active lifestyle) rather than no significant physical activity (a completely sedentary lifestyle). They reported that exercise that burns only an average of around 100 calories could decrease the risk of early death by between 16 and 30 percent.

Of course, the benefits of exercise go way beyond prevention of early death. Moderate exercise improves mental function, reduces risk of many debilitating diseases including diabetes, improves your immune system, significantly decreases your risk for cancer and dramatically improves your quality of life.

If you ask anyone that exercises regularly, they will say their main complaint is that they don’t have more time for exercise. Unlike most other activities, at the end of a day, people almost never say “I wish I didn’t exercise today.”

Something worth thinking about.