Latest news with #AliceFuller
Scottish Sun
6 days ago
- Health
- Scottish Sun
The exact number of daily steps to slash your risk of dying young by almost 50% – and it's loads less than you think
Find out what happened to Sun Health's Alice Fuller when she challenged herself to walk 10,000 each day for an entire year STEP UP The exact number of daily steps to slash your risk of dying young by almost 50% – and it's loads less than you think Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) FOR decades, 10,000 steps a day has been drilled into us as the ultimate daily goal to keep fit and healthy. But new research shows you could move far less and still boost your health, slash the risk of disease, and even live longer. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 A brisk daily walk of 7,000 steps may protect your brain and heart Credit: Getty A study led by scientists from the University of Sydney in Australia found that walking just 7,000 steps each day can reduce your risk of dementia, heart disease and dying early. Even modest step counts of 4,000 steps a day can reap benefits over very low levels of activity, experts found. But they added that "10,000 steps per day will still be better than 7,000 steps" - with the higher step count leading to more health benefits. This isn't the first study to suggest you don't need to hit 10,000 steps a day to claim the rewards. Read more on living longer LIVE LONG & PROSPER Nine daily tasks to help you live longer & they take a few minutes Separate research, published by London scientists last year, found that walking just 5,000 steps three days a week can increase life expectancy by three years. Meanwhile, a Polish study from 2023 found getting your step count up to 2,337 each day was enough to slash your risk of heart disease. The new study, published in The Lancet Public Health, saw researchers examine data from dozens of studies from around the world, including in the UK, on tens of thousands of adults. They found that walking just 7,000 steps a day was linked to a 25 per cent lower risk of heart disease. It was also associated with a 14 per cent reduced risk of type 2 diabetes, a 38 per cent lower risk of dementia, and a 22 per cent reduced risk of depression. The researchers also found that when people walked 7,000 daily steps, compared to walking 2,000 steps, they were 47 per cent less likely to die during the follow-up periods of the studies analysed. Get fit at 50: Workouts for beginners and those short on time And while the number of steps walked did not sway whether or not a person got cancer, people who walked more steps were 37 per cent less likely to die from cancer. "Although 10,000 steps per day can still be a viable target for those who are more active, 7,000 steps per day is associated with clinically meaningful improvements in health outcomes and might be a more realistic and achievable target for some," the authors wrote in the study. "Even modest daily step counts were associated with health benefits," they added. "7,000 steps per day was associated with sizeable risk reductions across most outcomes, compared with the reference of 2,000 steps per day." 'More is always better' Commenting on the study, Dr Daniel Bailey, Reader - Sedentary Behaviour and Health, Brunel University of London, said: "The finding that doing 5000-7000 steps per day is an important addition to the literature which helps to debunk the myth that 10,000 steps per day should be the target for optimal health. "This study suggested that 5,000-7,000 steps per day can significantly reduce the risk of many health outcomes, but that does not mean you cannot get benefits if you don't meet this target. "The study also found that health risks were reduced with each 1000 extra steps per day, up to a maximum of 12,000 steps per day. So just adding more steps from your starting point can have important benefits for health." Dr Andrew Scott, senior Lecturer in clinical exercise physiology at the University of Portsmouth, added: "In most cases the 10,000 steps per day will still be better than 7,000 steps, just by decreasing margins of health benefit return. "More important than the exact number of steps, it demonstrates that overall, more is always better and people should not focus too much on the numbers, particularly on days where activity is limited. "The steps per day is useful when people's exercise is weight-bearing, however, cycling, swimming and rowing are not well-represented by the steps per day model."
The Irish Sun
28-06-2025
- The Irish Sun
Fairytale European city that is like ‘going back centuries' to get new easyJet flights from the UK
A EUROPEAN city most people associate with Christmas is getting new UK flights this year. Strasbourg is the capital city of the Grand Est region and sits on the French-German border. 5 easyJet is introducing new flights to Strasbourg Credit: Alamy 5 The Petite France quarter is known for its beautiful houses and canals Credit: Alamy And in November, easyJet will be flying to Strasbourg from Manchester. Despite the UK getting hot this week, the city is known for its bustling Christmas market. Strasbourg is known as the "Capital of Christmas" with the market, also known as Christkindelsmärik, is scheduled to run from November 27 to December 27. Flight tickets have been released already with tickets on sale in November from £48.99 (one-way). Read More on City Breaks From November 28, the new service will operate twice weekly on Fridays and Sundays. This is part of easyJet's expansion of 22 new routes from UK airports for the winter season. For anyone keen to jet off before then, easyJet already offers flights from the UK to Strasbourg flying from London Heathrow from £38.99 - and it's one hour and 35 minutes away. And the city is equally just as beautiful to explore during the summertime with average highs of 26C. Most read in City breaks The area of Strasbourg that attracts most of the tourists is Petite France where you'll find the charming houses, cobbled streets and canals. One visitor said: "It's breathtaking, one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to. Escape Winter: Fly to Gran Canaria with EasyJet 5 easyJet flights from Manchester align with the Christmas market Credit: Alamy 5 Strasbourg also houses what's believed to be the world's oldest wine barrel Credit: Alamy "It's like stepping back in time several centuries." Another added that it's a place that makes you "feel like you're in a fairytale." Not that you can taste it, but Strasbourg is home to what's believed to be the world's oldest barrel of wine. It's housed in the Historic Wine Cellar of Strasbourg Hospital, a 14th-century cellar beneath the modern city hospital . The wine has been tasted only three times in its history, in the years 1576, 1718, and 1944. It's not drinkable any longer though as it dates back to 1472. While that barrel remains untouched, the cellar still produces wine, around 140,000 bottles each year. Not to mention there's lots of wine bars and pubs throughout the city, it's known for its white wines, particularly Riesling and Gewürztraminer . Popular spots for wine include L'Alsace à Boire which sells local wines along with charcuterie boards. Or Le Purgatoire which has been praised for its extensive wine list. Here are Plus, easyJet has launched One Travel Writer visited Strasbourg The Sun's Health Feature Editor Alice Fuller recently visited the city - here are her thoughts. "The vibrant French city is a powerful political centre (home to the European Parliament, the Council of Europe, and the European Court of Human Rights) yet it still has a quaint countryside village feel. "With half-timbered houses, cobblestone streets and a 1,000-year-old cathedral stood alongside lively bars, modern museums and shimmering glass consulates, it's a seamless mix of mediaeval and futuristic. Strolling the narrow streets, I marvel at colourful toytown cottages that look like they're straight out of a Grimm's fairytale next to sprawling French chateaux." 5 Strasbourg has classic timber houses and very old wine Credit: Alamy
