Analysis of over 36,000 people with high blood pressure has shown that taking more steps, even below the recommended daily target of 10,000 steps, and walking faster, is associated with a significant reduction in the risk of major problems of the heart and blood vessels.
The study, published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, found that compared to a daily step count of 2,300 steps, every extra 1,000 steps was linked to a 17% reduction in the risk of developing a major adverse cardiovascular event (MACE), up to 10,000 steps.
Additional steps above 10,000 were associated with a lower risk of stroke.
Approximately 1.28 billion people worldwide are living with high blood pressure, placing them at increased risk of heart disease (49%), stroke (62%), and heart failure (77–89%).
Professor Emmanuel Stamatakis, Director of the Mackenzie Wearables Research Hub at the University of Sydney, stated: “This study is one of the first to demonstrate a dose-response relationship between daily step count and major problems of the heart and blood vessels.
In a nutshell, we found that, if you live with high blood pressure, the more you walk with greater intensity, the lower your risk for future serious cardiovascular events.”
“These findings support the message that any amount of physical activity is beneficial, even below the widely recommended daily target of 10,000 steps.”
The study analysed data from 32,192 people in the UK Biobank study who had been diagnosed with high blood pressure and wore an accelerometer on their wrist for seven days. Their average age was 64, and they were followed up for nearly eight years. During this time, 1,935 cardiovascular events occurred.
Key findings include:
– 17% reduction in overall risk for every extra 1,000 steps/day
– 22% reduction in heart failure
– 9% reduction in heart attack risk
– 24% reduction in stroke risk
These reductions translated to absolute risk decreases per 10,000 person-years of:
– 31.5 MACE events
– 7.2 heart failure events
– 9.9 heart attacks
– 10.4 strokes
The average walking intensity for the 30 fastest minutes per day was 80 steps/minute, associated with a 30% reduced risk of MACE. No harm was observed even with faster walking (>130 steps/minute).
Results in 37,350 people without high blood pressure showed similarly strong associations between increased step count and reduced risk of cardiovascular events.
Prof. Stamatakis concluded: “Our findings offer patients accessible and measurable targets for heart health. Clinicians should promote physical activity as standard care, especially in patients with high blood pressure. Future recommendations could consider promoting higher stepping intensity.”
Strengths of the study include its large sample size, detailed activity measurement using accelerometers, and linkage with national health records. Limitations include lack of follow-up activity data and a mostly non-representative sample skewed towards healthier individuals.
If you care about heart health, please read studies about a surprising link between alcohol drinking and heart health and both blood pressure numbers can predict heart disease risk.
For more about heart health, please read studies about a new cause of heart rhythm disorders and eating just one cup of nitrate-rich vegetables daily can reduce heart disease risk.
The study is published in European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.
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