Moderate movement and health . . and other stories

Physical activity

Physical activity prevents obesity, reduces levels of cardiovascular risk factors, and improves health in many other ways too. Even so, in developed countries only two in three adults achieve the minimum recommended 150 minutes of moderate activity every week. A longitudinal study of 200 000 adults in Taiwan reports that smaller amounts of exercise are also worthwhile. People who managed around half the recommended amount of physical activity had a substantially lower incidence of hypertension, dyslipidaemia, and diabetes over six years of follow-up than people who took no exercise at all (Br J …