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DO YOU REALLY need to walk 10,000 steps a day to see results? When it comes to the brain, scientists are now saying you don’t. In fact, a study published earlier this week in Nature Medicine calcula…
“Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links.”
DO YOU REALLY need to walk 10,000 steps a day to see results? When it comes to the brain, scientists are now saying you don’t. In fact, a study published earlier this week in Nature Medicine calculated the minimum you need to walk to lower your Alzheimer’s disease risk. Those steps may also explain why some people develop the disease at a faster rate than others.
“This sheds light on why some people who appear to be on an Alzheimer’s disease trajectory don’t decline as quickly as others,” says Jasmeer Chhatwal, MD, PhD, a neurologist at the Mass General Brigham department of neurology and senior study author. “Lifestyle factors appear to impact the earliest stages of Alzheimer’s disease, suggesting that lifestyle changes may slow the emergence of cognitive symptoms if we act early.”
For people without a genetic predisposition to Alzheimer’s, prior research estimates 45 percent of Alzheimer’s disease cases are potentially preventable. That’s by making simple changes to your life, like getting regular exercise. Want to know if you’re hitting this daily move goal? Read on to know more.
What’s the Magic Number to Walk for Brain Health?
Neurologists have found a daily target of 3,000 to 5,000 steps is the minimum you need to reduce Alzheimer’s risk. It’s a pretty specific number and less than you might expect when 10,000 steps is a popular step goal.
Researchers came up with the range after analyzing step count data of 296 adults between 50 to 90 years old with elevated levels of amyloid-beta, a protein that builds up in an Alzheimer’s brain. Afterward, Chhatwal and her team used PET imaging to scan each of their brains to measure baseline levels of amyloid-beta plaques and tau tangles (both hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease). Every adult was given cognitive tests each year for an average of 9 years along with repeated brain images to track changes in tau.
Daily walking of 3,000 to 5,000 steps was linked to a 3-year delay in cognitive decline. And as a lot of wellness research has pointed to—the more you walk, the better it is for your body. The brain is no exception.
For people who regularly walked 5,001 to 7,500 steps a day, cognitive decline was delayed by 7 years compared to people who walked less. The people who had the most rapid decline in cognition and daily functioning were people who live a sedentary lifestyle (walking fewer than 5,000 steps per day).
How Does Daily Walking Protect Against Alzheimer’s?
There are a lot of ways that walking helps the brain, explains Vernon Williams, MD, sports neurologist and founding director of the Center for Sports Neurology and Pain Medicine at Cedars-Sinai Orthopaedics. For example, regular physical activity like walking stimulates the release of endorphins, which are natural mood elevators with anti-inflammatory properties.
Exercise is also linked to promoting neuronal growth and greater blood flow to the brain, adds Nikhil Palekar, MD, director of the Stony Brook Center of Excellence for Alzheimer’s Disease at Stony Brook Medicine. “Regular walking also improves metabolic health, as it helps reduce weight, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels, all of which are known risk factors for dementia in older age.“
The current study shows that walking also helps in another way: slowing down tau buildup. People who regularly walked and showed slower cognitive decline had tau proteins accumulate more slowly compared to sedentary adults.
“We want to empower people to protect their brain and cognitive health by keeping physically active,” says Wai-Ying Wendy Yau, MD, a cognitive neurologist in the Mass General Brigham department of neurology and lead study author. “Every step counts—and even small increases in daily activities can build over time to create sustained changes in habit and health.” Ultimately, they hope 3,000 to 5,000 steps is less daunting than tackling a 10,000 step count and will encourage people to start moving sooner.
Need Help Keeping Track of Your Steps?
Counting out and keeping track of thousands can be daunting, but there are all kinds of fitness trackers out there that will seemlessly integrate into your life. Below are a few of our favorites, but for even more options consult our Best Fitness Trackers Guide and Best Smart Rings Guide.
COROS PACE 3
Ring 4
Watch Ultra 3
HRM-Pro Plus
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