Exercise Away Your Risk of Disease.

Exercise Away Your Risk of Disease

Medical studies overwhelmingly confirm that exercise can lower the risk of life-threatening diseases.Men who exercised vigorously enough to burn at least 1,500 calories a week had a 25 percent lower mortality rate than men who didn't exercise. In another study, reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association, out of 40,000 postmenopausal women studied for seven years, those who exercised regularly were 20 percent less likely to die during the period than their sedentary counterparts. 

Here are the major diseases that exercise helps exorcise. 

Heart disease and stroke. The studies confirm it time and again: If you exercise regularly your risk of heart attack is reduced—to as much as half that of a sedentary person, according to a report in the New England Journal of Medicine. But if you don't exercise, your risk of heart disease is comparable to that of someone who smokes or has blood pressure or high cholesterol, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention points out. Sedentary people are 80 percent more likely to develop heart disease than active people, according to the MacArthur Foundation Study on Successful Aging. 

Exercise also lowers your likelihood of a life-threatening stroke. One study, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, showed that the risk of fatal stroke was 60 percent lower in Dutch men who exercised than in Dutch men who were sedentary. And moderate exercise for at least an hour five times a week can reduce stroke risk by up to 50 percent, according to a 1998 study reported in the journal Stroke. 

Regular physical activity changes the way the body handles free radicals, oxygen-scavenging molecules that allow low-density lipoprotein (LDL, the "bad" cholesterol) to build up dangerous plaque in arteries. Regular aerobic exercise increases enzymes that neutralize the free radicals. Furthermore, exercise affects the endothelium, the lining of the blood vessels. When you exercise, the endothelium sends chemical signals that cause your blood vessels to dilate. Blood vessels that dilate frequently are more flexible and less likely to have pockets where plaque can form. 

High blood pressure. According to the American College of Sports Medicine, exercise can reduce moderately high blood pressure—both systolic and diastolic—by at least 10 mm Hg. 

Breast cancer. Several studies show that exercise reduces the risk of breast cancer. Researchers in Norway, for example, monitored the exercise habits of more than 25,000 women and found that those who exercised at least four hours a week had a 37 percent lower risk of developing breast cancer than those who were sedentary. Another study, from the University of Southern California, found a reduction of 40 percent with just over three and one-half hours a week of exercise. Although it's not known for sure why exercise may reduce breast cancer risk, it's believed to be related to the fact that exercise lowers levels of estrogen in the body. 

Colon cancer. There's evidence that physical activity protects against colon cancer, which is more prevalent in overweight individuals. In  one study, reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, women who exercised the most had half the risk of colon cancer as women who exercised the least. Men are equally protected. A Harvard University study showed that men who walked just a few hours a week reduced their colon cancer risk by 30 percent. 

Infectious diseases. Preliminary studies have shown that regular exercise exerts a positive influence on the immune system. Exercise helps prevent minor infectious illnesses such as colds and flu and has been shown to slow the progression of AIDS. Exercise increases the immune system's natural killer cells and the T cells that provoke the immune response. Exercise also raises the body's levels of endogenous pyrogen, a fever-causing protein, which results in a higher body temperature that slows down viruses and bacteria, thus making them easier targets for the immune system. In addition, exercise speeds up metabolism, possibly flushing carcinogens out of the body. 

Exercise may also slow the natural decline of the immune system that comes with age. A study reported in Sports Medicine Digest showed that endurance training such as running increased the immune system function of Japanese men. The exercise slowed down age-related decline in both T cell function and the production of interleukin-2, a protein that facilitates the production of T cells. 

Diabetes. Exercise can help reduce the risk of diabetes and help control it if it does develop. During exercise, muscles rapidly use their own stores of glycogen and triglycerides, as well as fatty acids derived from the breakdown of fatty tissue triglycerides and glucose released from the liver. In patients with type 2 diabetes, exercise may improve insulin sensitivity and reduce elevated blood glucose levels. In addition, exercise helps delay or stop cardiovascular disease, the leading killer of people with diabetes. And for people who are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, exercise combined with proper diet often eliminates the need for insulin. 

Osteoporosis. Osteoporosis, the brittle bone disease, can lead to life-threatening hip fractures, particularly in postmenopausal women. Studies show that weight-bearing exercise—lifting weights, walking or jogging, and dancing, to name some prominent examples—increases bone mass and prevents fractures. As little as one hour a week reduces the risk of hip fractures, reports a study in the Annals of Internal 

Medicine. Researchers monitored more than 9,700 women ages 65 and older for seven years and found that those women who were moderately to vigorously active were up to 42 percent less likely to have hip and vertebral fractures than their inactive counterparts. 

Get 30 Minutes of Exercise Daily
The Surgeon General recommends that every adult in America accumulate 30 minutes or more of moderate-intensity physical activity on most, preferably all, days of the week. But according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), only about half of Americans get the daily exercise they need to be healthy. 

Exercise often conjures up the image of glistening bodies working off that last pucker of cellulite in an expensive gym or of hikers with a pack the size of Mt. Everest making for that next ridge. But exercise can be as close as your own backyard or living room. Walking, gardening, raking leaves, taking the stairs, doing housework, and playing with the kids are considered exercise and can count toward your daily total, as can any regular sports activity, such as tennis, aerobics, golf, or cycling. 

If you already have at least 30 minutes of exercise in your daily schedule, the CDC recommends that you pick up the pace to derive even more health benefits. 

Get Your Exercise in Short Sessions

If you find it difficult to get to a gym regularly or even take 30 minutes for a run around the park, try regular 10-minute sessions at home. Cumulatively, they are as valuable as a longer session of aerobic exercise, research shows. 

During a four-month study at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, obese women were asked to limit calories to fewer than 1,500 and exercise five times weekly. The women were assigned one of three exercise regimens: a single, 40-minute session of any exercise, 10 minutes of any exercise four times daily, and 10 minutes four times  daily on a home treadmill. The shorter sessions proved more beneficial because those who exercised in their homes were most likely to stick with the routine; they were also most successful at losing their extra pounds. 

Exercise doesn't just have to be jogging, biking, and swimming. You can also make lifestyle changes to get exercise in short, but important, spurts. Love your remote control? Stash it away and get up to change TV channels. Park your car at a distance from the mall entrance when you go shopping or bike to a local shop. Take the stairs whenever possible. And don't use your kids as gofers—get whatever you need yourself.