Getting fit in middle age halves the risk of having a stroke later in life, research shows.
Scientists say it is never too late to take up exercise – and doing so even after years of inactivity can quickly pay dividends.
Remarkably, they found men who started getting fit in their 40s and 50s saw their stroke risk drop to levels seen among those who had exercised throughout their youth.
Getting fit in middle age halves the risk of having a stroke later in life, research shows
The findings, by Norwegian researchers, offer hope that it is not too late to get fit to the millions who do very little exercise in middle age.
Erik Prestgaard, a doctor in the cardiology department at Oslo University Hospital, said even after decades of little physical activity, those who change their habits in this period can dramatically improve their chances of a healthy retirement.
‘If you’re 50 and not fit, over the next years you can become fit and lower your risk. It’s never too late to get fit,’ he said.
Crucially, however, his team found those who do not take control of their health at this point see their stroke risk soar.
The research team, presenting their findings at the European Society of Cardiology congress in Barcelona, found that failing to exercise in these years can have a catastrophic impact on health in later life.
Public Health England last week warned of an ‘inactivity epidemic’ which has seen exercise levels drop 20 per cent since the 1960s. Officials are particularly worried about the 6.3million middle-aged people – 41 per cent of the age group – who do not even take a brisk walk once a month.
The Norwegian researchers tracked 2,000 men aged 40 to 60, starting in the 1970s. They were initially monitored for seven years to see how their exercise habits changed.
Most participants – 65 per cent – became less fit in those seven years, and only 35 per cent took up more exercise.
The researchers then tracked them for another 23 years, in which time one in eight had a stroke. Those who had increased their exercise the most in the seven-year window were 56 per cent less likely to have a stroke later compared to those who had become more inactive.
Dr Prestgaard said: ‘The men who increased the most were not fit at all, they went from low levels and moved up. A big part of these men were just getting themselves together.
‘The findings are important because they show moderate increases in cardio-respiratory fitness in middle-aged men may significantly lower stroke risk. It’s a really big risk reduction – 56 per cent.’
An estimated 100,000 Britons have a stroke each year.
Dr Prestgaard found no difference in outcome between those who had been fit all their lives and those who suddenly decided to get active. And he said it would not take a big effort for someone to turn their life around. ‘They weren’t in any kind of fitness programme,’ he said. ‘They weren’t marathon runners or anything like that.’
But he warned that those who let themselves go at this time – which his study suggests the majority do – increase the risk of a stroke. ‘If you’re in good shape when you’re 50 you can’t just stop working out and float on what you have. You have to keep it up,’ he said.
Dr Prestgaard admitted the findings were limited because the team tracked only men, so it is not clear whether they would also apply to women.
The findings, by Norwegian researchers, offer hope that it is not too late to get fit to the millions who do very little exercise in middle age