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The authors of a new study hope that their findings will encourage women to engage in physical activity. This is especially important since women derive greater benefits than men from the same amount of regular exercise.
According to the National Health Service of the United Kingdom, both men and women aged 19 to 64 should aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise each week. They are also advised to include at least two sessions of muscle-strengthening activities weekly.
Meanwhile, experts indicate that girls and women generally spend less time on physical activity compared to boys and men.
What the Study Revealed
At the same level of activity, women experience greater health benefits than their male counterparts. “Even a relatively small amount of exercise can provide significant benefits for women,” noted Dr. Hunwei Ji, a co-author of the study from Qingdao University in China.
The university team analyzed data from 412,413 volunteers who had no health issues. The researchers collected this information from 1997 to 2017. By the end of 2019, 39,935 participants had died, with 11,670 of those deaths attributed to cardiovascular diseases.
During the study, the team asked participants about their health status and physical activity—factors that can prevent premature death.
Researchers found that most men exercised more regularly than women. While the team linked exercise to a reduced risk of premature death, particularly from cardiovascular diseases, the benefits for women were more pronounced.
The team discovered that 140 minutes of moderate exercise per week reduced the risk of premature death from any cause for women by 18 percent compared to those leading a sedentary lifestyle. In contrast, men needed to engage in 300 minutes of similar exercise weekly to achieve the same result, as reported by The Guardian.
The reduction in risk increased in line with the amount of time both men and women spent exercising, up to 300 minutes of moderate activity per week, after which it plateaued. At this level, women’s risk of premature death from any cause was 24 percent lower compared to physically inactive women.
Key Takeaways
“300 minutes is the threshold where we see the greatest benefits, but statistically significant gender differences emerge even with less time,” Dr. Ji commented on the results.
However, the team cautioned that their study relied on self-reported data and did not account for physical activity related to household chores.
Dr. Susan Cheng, another co-author of the study, emphasized that when it comes to striving for a longer and healthier life, any type of physical activity is beneficial—regardless of its effectiveness for men and women.
According to the researcher, simply understanding this concept can particularly help women who feel too busy or intimidated to start exercising. They don’t need to compare how much harder they work out than men. Women “can walk their own path to success, and every bit of progress they make matters,” assured Dr. Susan Cheng.
“Although women seem to engage in less sports during their free time, their mortality risk decreases more sharply with any amount or frequency of exercise each week,” commented Professor Emmanuel Stamatakis from the University of Sydney, Australia. “This isn’t surprising, as the analysis did not consider that the physical efforts women exert for these activities are greater than those of men,” he added.
The findings from the study were published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
