Climb stairs to PROLONG LIFE?
Swiss researchers claim that taking stairs instead of the lift during work can prolong life.
A study that includes 69 people shows that use of stairs instead of the lift leads to less body fat, trimmed waistlines and better fitness.
The University of Geneva team calculates that it can cut 15% risk of premature death from any cause. The outcomes of the study have been presented in a meeting of the European Society of Cardiology.
At the start of the study, the 69 participants had a deskbound lifestyle as they had less than two hours of exercise or sports every week and climbed fewer than 10 flights of stairs every day.
After 12 weeks of the study, the participants, who were hospital employees at Geneva University, were told to use the stairs during work instead of taking the lift.
Then, the number of flights of stairs was increased five per day to 23 on an average basis.
After three months of the trial the researchers found that those people had drop in blood pressure, better lung capacity and cholesterol measurement.
There was also a decrease in their boy fat, waist measurements and they had better ability to perform aerobic exercises.
If taken together, it reduces 15% chances of dying young, say the researchers.
According to Lead researcher Dr Philippe Meyer, “The results seem to suggest that stair climbing must be a major public health implication.”
“Larger studies are needed to confirm the results of the study,” he added.
