Five minutes a day to lower your cancer risk

Physical activity is an important facet of overall health and wellbeing. Research shows that regular exercise can lower the risk of chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer.

Indeed, the World Health Organisation (WHO) states that people who are insufficiently active have a 20 - 30% higher risk of death compared to people who are sufficiently active.

Although the importance of physical activity is abundantly clear, around 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men worldwide do not follow the recommendation for moderate-intensity exercise for at least 150 minutes or vigorous-intensity exercise for 75 minutes each week.

But a groundbreaking study, published in Nature Medicine, brings good news for people who do not like or cannot do structured exercise. It demonstrates that Vigorous Intermittent Lifestyle Physical Activity (VILPA), characterised by brief bursts of activity performed sporadically throughout the day - climbing stairs, carrying children or groceries, vigorous housework or running to catch a bus - can have a profound impact on health.

The study examined the association of VILPA with all-cause, cardiovascular disease (CVD) and cancer mortality in a sample of 22,398 non-exercising adults in the UK Biobank over seven years.

Based on wrist-worn accelerometer measurements, just 4.5 minutes per day of vigorous physical activity performed in 1-minute bursts were associated with up to a 30% reduction in all-cause and cancer mortality risk and up to a 34% reduction in CVD mortality risk, compared to those who did not engage in VILPA.

Increasing VILPA to around 6 minutes a day was associated with up to a 40% reduction in the risk of all-cause mortality, a 40% reduction in cancer mortality risk and a 49% decrease in the risk of CVD mortality.

VILPA offers a flexible and accessible way to improve health outcomes, and these findings provide crucial insights into the potential benefits of VILPA, particularly for individuals who are not inclined or able to engage in structured exercise routines.

What’s more, this new study also supports evidence from previous research. A study published in BMC Public Health in 2021 found that engaging in brief, intense physical activities throughout the day, such as climbing stairs or performing high-intensity housework, was associated with improved cardiorespiratory fitness and reduced cardiovascular risk in a diverse population.