Adopting a physically active lifestyle at any stage of adulthood significantly lowers the risk of dying from any cause, especially from cardiovascular disease. A sweeping analysis of 85 studies confirmed that those who stay active consistently reduce their mortality risk by 30–40%, while even those who become active later in life enjoy a 20–25% reduction.

The findings prompted the researchers to hypothesize that switching to a more active lifestyle at any point in adult life may extend the lifespan, and that it’s never too late to start.

To find out if differing patterns of physical activity, as well as its cumulative impact during adulthood, might be associated with a lower risk of death from all causes, and specifically from cardiovascular disease and cancer, they searched databases for relevant studies that assessed physical activity at two or more points in time, and included in their review 85 studies up to April 2024, with sample sizes ranging from 357 to 6,572,984 participants.

A pooled data analysis of the results showed that, overall, a higher level of physical activity was associated with lower risks of all the included outcomes.

Consistently active people had around a 30–40% lower risk of dying from any cause, while those who increased their levels of physical activity from below those recommended in guidelines had a 20-25% lower risk of death from any cause.

In addition, participants who switched from being physically inactive to being active were 22% less likely to die from any cause than those who remained inactive.

Compared with participants who were consistently inactive over time, those who were consistently active, overall, or only in their leisure time, were around 40% and 25% less likely to die from cardiovascular disease and cancer, respectively.

People who were consistently active or who became active had lower risks of death from any cause, and specifically from cardiovascular disease, when meeting the recommended weekly physical activity levels. Currently, those recommendations state that adults should aim for 150-300 weekly minutes of moderate intensity physical activity, or 75-150 weekly minutes of vigorous intensity physical activity, or a combination of the two.

Clocking up more than the recommended maximum weekly amount of moderate-to- vigorous intensity exercise was associated with only a small additional reduction in risk.

However, maintaining or increasing physical activity at levels, even at levels below the recommended weekly amount, was associated with appreciable health benefits, indicating that some physical activity is always better than none, say the researchers.

A preliminary analysis suggested that an average volume of physical activity that met the recommended weekly amount was also associated with a 30–40% lower risk of death from all causes.

“As being consistently active provides greater health benefits than being previously active (i.e., no longer maintaining activity), this highlights the importance of sustained [physical activity] over time,” the researchers said. “Future [physical activity] interventions may not only target inactive people, but also support active people to maintain their activity.”

To read the article, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, click here