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Getting inactive people to walk just 5,000 steps three times a week could save the NHS £15 billion, new research suggests.
Replacing lazy lifestyles with moderate levels of activity would make a significant difference to the country’s overall health, a study found.
Research by insurers Vitality and the London School of Economic suggests that adopting regular exercise can also add up to three years to life expectancy.
They mapped the behavior and habits of more than a million people in the UK and South Africa over a decade.
Replacing lazy lifestyles with moderate levels of activity would make a significant difference to the country’s overall health, a study found. Research by insurers Vitality and the London School of Economic suggests that adopting regular exercise can also add up to three years to life expectancy
With around 35 per cent of the UK population classified as inactive, this is fueling declining health and rising non-communicable diseases such as type 2 diabetes, often resulting in hospital admission.
They found that if half achieved 5,000 steps once a week, the reduction in hospital admissions could lead to an estimated annual saving of £4 billion for the NHS.
This rises to £15 billion if those who don’t do regular exercise start walking 5,000 steps three times a week, they said.
Large positive effects were seen in all age groups, but this was especially true for older generations.
There was a 52 percent reduction in mortality risk for over-65s who regularly took 7,500 steps three or more times a week, they found.
This was significantly greater than the 38 percent seen in the 45-65 year olds and the 27 percent reduction of the overall population.
Maintaining a healthy physical activity habit — at least 5,000 steps three times a week for two years — can add between 2.5 years for men and 3 years for women to life expectancy, they found.
It also led to lower incidences of type 2 diabetes and reduced the risk of death in those who already had it by 40 percent.
Professor Joan Costa-Font, London School of Economics said: ‘The findings of this study are a clear call to action for policy makers to promote prevention in public health and build on the power of healthy habits to improve individual and collective health outcomes.
“Successful habit-based interventions can extend life expectancy, deliver significant savings to public health services, improve productivity and help address the significant long-term challenges posed by mental health, social isolation and non-communicable diseases such as cancer and type 2 diabetes.’