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Running: Any Amount Is Good And More May Not Be Better

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Although there is broad agreement that exercise is beneficial there has been substantial uncertainty about how much exercise is good for you. Recently some studies have suggested that too much exercise may actually reduce the benefits of exercise. Now a new study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology finds that even a small amount of exercise, even running for as little as 5 minutes a day, may be just as healthful as more exercise.

Analyzing data from more than 55,000 adults participating in the Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study, researchers find that, when compared to people who did not run, runners had a significantly reduced risk of both all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. There was no significant difference based on the distance run each week, or other measures of duration, speed, or frequency of running. The researches report that runners at all levels had a 30% reduction in the risk of death and a 45% reduction in the risk of cardiovascular death, resulting in a 3-year increase in life expectancy.

The study "may motivate more people to start running," said the authors.

In an accompanying editorial, Chi Pang Wen and colleagues write that despite the observational nature of the study, "the direct health benefits of exercise are irrefutable. The reality is that a virtuous cycle exists for an iterative process of incremental exercise promoting incremental health, and the healthier individuals in turn being more likely to exercise, blurring the simple cause-and-effect relationship." They advise physicians to offer a simple exercise prescription to patients: "15 min of brisk walking or 5 min of running is all it takes for most clinic patients. Exercise is a miracle drug in many ways."