Is it better to exercise harder or longer? The former may reduce your risk of multiple diseases, according to a recent study.
In the study, published late March in the European Heart Journal, researchers found people who get just a few minutes of vigorous activity daily are less likely to develop eight major diseases, including arthritis, heart disease, dementia, atrial fibrillation, type 2 diabetes, respiratory diseases, as well as liver and kidney disease.
For the study, researchers analyzed data of more than 96,000 people, comparing their overall activity levels, amount of vigorous activity and disease risk.
Those who did the most vigorous activity had a 63% lower risk of developing dementia, a 60% lower risk of type 2 diabetes and 46% lower risk of all-cause mortality, compared to those who did none at all, according to the findings.
Even 15 to 20 minutes per week of this type of effort, which is just a few minutes a day, was linked to meaningful health benefits, the authoers added.
