Older adults who walked instead of taking motor transport when they needed to get somewhere lived longer than those who opted for other forms of transportation, a new study finds.
The report found that people had a 25% lower risk of all-cause mortality when they walked at least once a week instead of driving or taking other forms of transportation. The study was published Tuesday in BMJ Public Health.
Investigators evaluated the walking habits of 11,539 people from Australia. Participants in the study were 75 years old, on average. Participants self-reported how often they walked for transport purposes (not recreational walking). In total, 44.1% walked for transportation every day, 31.5% did so more than once a week, 21.7% walked rarely or once a week and 2.7% never walked for transportation. The team compared those who walked for transportation purposes to those who never did.
Previous research from the team at Monash University School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine showed that walking for transportation helped younger and middle-aged adults live longer. But evidence on healthy older adults wasn’t as robust until the investigators started looking into it.
“It’s important to engage in any type of physical activity, and building muscle strength and healthy bones through physical activity are especially important as we age to help improve our balance and prevent falls,” Shivangi Shah, a PhD candidate and researcher from the school, said in a statement. “Our results suggest that walking for transport will have health benefits for older people.
“Any move is a good move. Even one extra minute is better than nothing. But physical activity does need to be tailored to each person’s capacity. If you have any doubts, talk to your GP,” Shah added.
People who never move and start walking may see the greatest health benefits, as previous research has shown, the authors noted.
Danijela Gasevic, a senior author and associate professor from Monash University’s School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine and the University of Edinburgh, said the results show how important infrastructure, such as sidewalks, can be to support good health.”Walking and physical activity generally are really important for our health and well-being, they have environmental and economic benefits, and they can help build social and community connections,” Gasevic said. “Transport walking is simple, free and does not need specialist training, making it sustainable and accessible for older people. However, to walk more for transport, we really need good infrastructure for walking — paths and roads connecting places and spaces; and safe environments.”
