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Walking may reduce stroke risk in older men
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Walking more hours per week was associated with reduced risk for onset of stroke in older men, according to the results of a prospective cohort study.
Although time spent walking affected stroke risk, walking pace did not, researchers found.
Barbara J. Jefferis, PhD, of University College London, and colleagues studied 3,435 ambulatory men aged 60 to 80 years who participated in the British Regional Heart Study. The men were recruited from 1978 to 1980, received follow-up measurements in 1998 to 2000, and were followed for stroke up to June 2010.
Participants were stratified by hours walked per week: 0 to 3 hours, 4 to 7 hours, 8 to 14 hours, 15 to 21 hours, or more than 22 hours.
During the follow-up period (median 10.9 years), first stroke events occurred at a rate of 6.7 per 1,000 person-years.
There was no association between total physical activity and onset of stroke (P for trend after multivariate adjustments=.1) or distance walked and onset of stroke (P for trend after multivariate adjustments=.403).
However, the researchers found an association between time spent walking and onset of stroke. Compared with men walking 0 to 3 hours per week, other groups had the following age- and region-adjusted HRs for onset of stroke:
- Men walking 4 to 7 hours per week: HR=0.89; 95% CI, 0.6-1.31.
- Men walking 8 to 14 hours per week: HR=0.63; 95% CI, 0.4-1.
- Men walking 15 to 21 hours per week: HR=0.68; 95% CI, 0.35-1.32.
- Men walking 22 or more hours per week: HR=0.36; 95% CI, 0.14-0.91.
After adjustment for risk markers and walking pace, HRs were slightly attenuated, but the trend remained, the researchers found.
The unadjusted HR for stroke was reduced in those walking at an average or brisk pace compared with those walking at a slow pace (HR=0.62; 95% CI, 0.42-0.92), but the association disappeared after adjustment for walking distance (HR=0.67; 95% CI, 0.44-1.02) or duration (HR=0.67; 95% CI, 0.43-1.04).
“Results suggest that the total volume of walking rather than the intensity is important for stroke prevention,” Jefferis and colleagues wrote. “We investigated a range of plausible mechanisms to explain associations between walking and stroke, including lipids, hypertension, markers of inflammation, and endothelial dysfunction, but none fully mediated the associations with time spent walking.”
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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