BUFFALO, N.Y., April 9 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers link brisk walking two or more hours a week to lowered risk of stroke in women.
The study, published in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association, found women who usually walked at a brisk pace -- 3 mph or faster -- had a 37 percent lower risk of any type of stroke than women who did not walk. Women walking two or more hours a week had a 30 percent lower risk of stroke.
"Physical activity, including regular walking, is an important modifiable behavior for stroke prevention," study lead author Jacob Sattelmair, a doctoral candidate in epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health, says in a statement. "The results of this specific study indicate that walking, in particular, is associated with lower risk of stroke."
Sattelmair and colleagues tracked 39,315 U.S. female health professionals for almost 12 years -- with an average age of 54 years -- participating in the Women's Health Study.
"For a crude estimate for a brisk pace, you should be able to talk, but not able to sing," Sattelmair explains. "If you cannot talk, slow down a bit. If you can sing, walk a bit faster."
