Even A Little Time Spent Running Has Significant Health Benefits

U.S. researchers who studied 55,137 adults between the ages of 18 and 100 over 15 years found that, compared to non-runners, runners – even those who run for only a few minutes a day – had a 30 percent lower risk of death from all causes and a 45 percent lower risk of death from heart disease or stroke. On average, runners also lived three years longer than non-runners. From a public health perspective, promoting running is as important as preventing smoking, obesity or hypertension. They also noted that the benefits of running can come from only five to 10 minutes a day rather than the recommended15 to 20 minutes (or more) a day that many find too time-consuming.