Researchers in Australia, who tracked 22 000 people over seven years, have suggested that everyday activities, like carrying heavy shopping, or energetic housework – any short bursts of daily activity that leave you out of breath – could slash the risk of cancer by nearly 20%.
Their study determined that just four and a half minutes of vigorous activity, completed in one-minute bursts during daily tasks, could reduce the overall risk of cancer by 18% and the risk of some cancers linked to physical activity by up to 32%.
This can include, said the scientists from the Charles Perkins Centre at the University of Sydney, mundane activities like vigorous housework, hefting heavy shopping around the supermarket and bursts of power walking.
The study team obtained the results from tracking 22 000 participants, who do not usually exercise, with wearable technical trackers, reports The Independent.
“We know that most middle-aged people don’t regularly exercise, which puts them at increased cancer risk,” said Professor Emmanuel Stamatakis, lead author of the study.
“But it’s only through the advent of wearable technology like activity trackers that we are able to look at the impact of short bursts of incidental physical activity done as part of daily living.
“It’s quite remarkable to see that upping the intensity of daily tasks for as little as four to five minutes a day, done in short bursts of around one minute each, is linked to an overall reduction in cancer risk.”
The results, which were published in JAMA Oncology, were found from monitoring participants over seven years.
Stamatakis said: “(It) is a bit like applying the principles of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) to your everyday life.”
He added that adults who do not exercise are at increased risk of developing certain cancers, like breast, endometrial or colon.
In the study sample of 22 398 people with an average age of 62 who did not exercise in their leisure time, the researchers found 2 356 new cancer events (1 084 in physical activity-related cancer) over an average follow-up of 6.7 years.
They found that a minimum of around 3.5 minutes of daily exercise was associated with up to an 18% reduction in cancer incidence, compared with none, while 4.5 minutes of daily exercise was associated with up to a 32% reduction in physical activity-related cancer incidence.
The cancers associated with physical activity included liver, lung, kidney, gastric cardia (a type of stomach cancer), endometrial, myeloid leukaemia, myeloma, colorectal, head and neck, bladder, breast and oesophageal adenocarcinoma (cancer of the oesophagus).
Study details
Vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity and cancer incidence among non-exercising adults: The UK Biobank Accelerometry Study
Emmanuel Stamatakis, Matthew Ahmadi, Christine Friedenreich, et al.
Published in JAMA Oncology on 27 July 2023
Key Points
Question Does vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity (VILPA) in short bouts (≤1 and ≤2 minutes) have a dose-response association with incident cancer among non-exercising adults?
Findings In this prospective cohort study of 22 398 self-reported non-exercising adults, a minimum dose of 3.4 to 3.6 minutes of VILPA per day was associated with a 17% to 18% reduction in total incident cancer risk compared with no VILPA. A median daily VILPA of 4.5 minutes was associated with a 31% to 32% reduction in physical activity–related cancer incidence.
Meaning The findings of this large cohort study suggest that 3 to 4 minutes of VILPA per day may be associated with decreased cancer incidence risk; thus, VILPA may be a promising intervention for cancer prevention among individuals unable or unmotivated to exercise in leisure time.
Abstract
Importance
Vigorous physical activity (VPA) is a time-efficient way to achieve recommended physical activity (PA) for cancer prevention, although structured longer bouts of VPA (via traditional exercise) are unappealing or inaccessible to many individuals.
Objectives
To evaluate the dose-response association of device-measured daily vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity (VILPA) with incident cancer, and to estimate the minimal dose required for a risk reduction of 50% of the maximum reduction.
Design, Setting, and Participants
This was a prospective cohort analysis of 22 398 self-reported non-exercising adults from the UK Biobank accelerometry subsample. Participants were followed up through October 30, 2021 (mortality and hospitalisations), or June 30, 2021 (cancer registrations).
Exposures
Daily VILPA of up to 1 and up to 2 minutes, assessed by accelerometers worn on participants’ dominant wrist.
Main Outcomes and Measures
Incidence of total cancer and PA-related cancer (a composite outcome of 13 cancer sites associated with low PA levels). Hazard ratios and 95% CIs were estimated using cubic splines adjusted for age, sex, education level, smoking status, alcohol consumption, sleep duration, fruit and vegetable consumption, parental cancer history, light- and moderate-intensity PA, and VPA from bouts of more than 1 or 2 minute(s), as appropriate.
Results
The study sample comprised 22 398 participants (mean [SD] age, 62.0 [7.6] years; 10 122 [45.2%] men and 12 276 [54.8%] women; 21 509 [96.0%] White individuals). During a mean (SD) follow-up of 6.7 (1.2) years (149 650 person-years), 2356 total incident cancer events occurred, 1084 owing to PA-related cancer. Almost all (92.3%) of VILPA was accrued in bouts of up to 1 minute. Daily VILPA duration was associated with outcomes in a near-linear manner, with steeper dose-response curves for PA-related cancer than total cancer incidence. Compared with no VILPA, the median daily VILPA duration of bouts up to 1 minute (4.5 minutes per day) was associated with an HR of 0.80 (95% CI, 0.69-0.92) for total cancer and 0.69 (95% CI, 0.55-0.86) for PA-related cancer. The minimal dose was 3.4 minutes per day for total (HR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.73-0.93) and 3.7 minutes for PA-related (HR, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.59-0.88) cancer incidence. Findings were similar for VILPA bout of up to 2 minutes.
Conclusions and Relevance
The findings of this prospective cohort study indicate that small amounts of VILPA were associated with lower incident cancer risk. Daily VILPA may be a promising intervention for cancer prevention in populations not able or motivated to exercise in leisure time.
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