Physical activity that makes you puff and sweat is key to avoiding an early death, a large Australian study of middle-aged and older adults has found.

The researchers followed 204,542 people for more than six years, and compared those who engaged in only moderate activity (such as gentle swimming, social tennis, or household chores) with those who included at least some vigorous activity (such as jogging, aerobics or competitive tennis).

They found that the risk of mortality for those who included some vigorous activity was 9 to 13 per cent lower, compared with those who only undertook moderate activity.

"The benefits of vigorous activity applied to men and women of all ages, and were independent of the total amount of time spent being active," said lead author Dr Klaus Gebel from James Cook University's Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention.

"The results indicate that whether or not you are obese, and whether or not you have heart disease or diabetes, if you can manage some vigorous activity it could offer significant benefits for longevity."

Co-author Dr Melody Ding from University of Sydney's School of Public Health, said the results indicated that vigorous activities should be more strongly encouraged in clinical and public health guidelines.

The current advice from the World Health Organization -- and health authorities in countries including the US, UK and Australia -- is for adults to accumulate at least 150 minutes of moderate activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity per week.

"The guidelines leave individuals to choose their level of exercise intensity, or a combination of levels, with two minutes of moderate exercise considered the equivalent of one minute of vigorous activity," Dr Ding said.

"It might not be the simple two-for-one swap that is the basis of the current guidelines," she said.

"Our research indicates that encouraging vigorous activities may help to avoid preventable deaths at an earlier age."

View post:
Working up a sweat: It could save your life