Scientists Reveal How Many Steps Cut Senior Heart Failure Risk

It's no secret that physical activity is good for our heart. But how many steps do we really need to be taking to keep our heart healthy as we age?

We're often told that 10,000 steps a day is the gold standard for a healthy lifestyle. But are 10,000 steps a day really necessary?

Walking is unique in its accessibility, versatility and simplicity. But the 10,000 target is somewhat arbitrary. "The 10,000 steps a day target seems to have come about from a trade name pedometer sold in 1965 by Yamasa Clock in Japan," Lindsay Bottoms, a reader in exercise and health physiology at the University of Hertfordshire in the U.K., previously told Newsweek. "The device was called 'Manpo-kei,' which translates to '10,000 steps meter.' This was a marketing tool for the device and has seemed to have stuck across the world as the daily step target."

There is no doubt that walking is associated with a mountain of health benefits, including reducing our risk of heart diseases, diabetes, dementia and certain cancers. However, studies have shown that the maximum risk reductions for all cause mortality can be seen after 8,800 daily steps, with maximum reduction in cardiovascular risk seen at 7,100 steps.

As we get older, hitting these targets can become more of a challenge. But new research, published in the journal JAMA Cardiology, has shown that women over 60 can see significant improvements in heart health after just 3,000 daily steps.

"In ambulatory older women, higher amounts of usual daily light and moderate intensity activities were associated with lower risk of developing heart failure with preserved ejection fraction independent of demographic and clinical factors associated with heart failure risk," the study's lead author Michael J. LaMonte, a research professor of epidemiology and environmental health in University at Buffalo's School of Public Health and Health Professions, said in a statement. "Accumulating 3,000 steps per day might be a reasonable target that would be consistent with the amount of daily activity performed by women in this study."

In their study, which analyzed data from the Women's Health Initiative, nearly 6,000 female participants were followed for an average of 7.5 years to look for links between their physical activity, sedentary time and risk of heart failure.

Their results showed that women who walked 3,600 steps per day, on average, at a normal pace were 26 percent less likely to develop heart failure. Their results also showed that for each 70 minutes per day spent in light intensity physical activity, like household chores, participants were 12 percent less likely to develop heart failure, with this figure rising to 16 percent for ever 30 minutes per day spent in moderate to vigorous intensity exercise like walking and climbing the stairs.

These findings offer a more attainable step target for older individuals hoping to support their cardiovascular and overall health.

"Our results showing heart failure prevention in older women might be enhanced through walking around 3,000 steps or so per day at usual pace is very relevant given the current emphasis at the federal level on identifying an amount of daily physical activity that can be referenced against steps per day for cardiovascular health and resilience to incorporate in future public health guidelines," LaMonte said.