Even small amounts of activity linked to lower death risk
Among 142,949 adults followed for a median 15 years, walking, moderate activity and vigorous activity were each linked to lower mortality from 1–74 minutes weekly.
Limit: Physical activity was self-reported rather than measured objectively
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
This observational cohort study followed 142,949 adults aged 35–70 at recruitment across 25 high-, middle- and low-income countries. Women accounted for 59.2% of participants. Participants reported their physical activity every three years, and researchers averaged repeated reports to assess long-term activity. During a median follow-up of 15.0 years, 16,105 participants died, including 5,233 from cardiovascular disease.
Higher amounts of walking, moderate activity and vigorous activity were each associated with lower risks of death overall, from cardiovascular disease and from other causes. These associations began at 1–74 minutes a week. With total activity held constant, a greater share of vigorous activity was also linked to lower overall mortality.
Why it matters
The study bears on how the amount and intensity of physical activity relate to survival as adults grow older, across countries with different income levels.
Caveats
The observational design cannot establish cause and effect, and activity was self-reported. The results were reported in a congress abstract.
The paper
University of Science and Technology of China; Simon Fraser University
ESC Congress 2026 Abstract, Oct 26, 2026
Presented at ESC Congress 2026
