Regular jogging increases life expectancy

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BISPEBJERG, Germany, May 7 (UPI) -- Between 60 and 90 minutes of jogging per week at a slow or average pace delivers optimum benefits for longevity, researchers in Germany found.

Peter Schnohr, chief cardiologist of the Copenhagen City Heart Study at Bispebjerg University Hospital, Copenhagen, said in the jogging sub-study, the mortality of 1,116 male joggers and 762 female joggers was compared to that of non-joggers in the main study population.

All participants were asked to answer questions about the amount of time they spent jogging each week, and to rate their own perceptions of pace -- slow, average and fast.

The first data were collected between 1976 and 1978, the second from 1981 to 1983, the third from 1991 to 1994, and the fourth from 2001 to 2003.

"We can say with certainty that regular jogging increases longevity. The good news is that you don't actually need to do that much to reap the benefits," Schnohr said in a statement.

The study showed 22 deaths among the joggers. The risk of death was reduced by 44 percent for male joggers and 44 percent for female joggers.

The findings presented at the EuroPRevent2012 meeting in Dublin, Ireland, found undertaking regular jogging increases life expectancy of men by 6.2 years and of women by 5.6 years.