Older men who walk daily may lower their stroke risk

Older men who walked at least one to two hours each day compared to less than half an hour per day had a reduced risk of stroke, in a large population-based study reported in the American Heart Association journal Stroke.

In a study of 3,435 healthy men age 60 to 80, researchers asked distance walked each week and usual walking pace. They divided them into groups: those who spent zero-three hours a week; four-seven hours; eight-14 hours; 15-21 hours; and more than 22 hours walking per week. Men were followed for the next 10 years and monitored for all new cases of stroke.

Researchers found:

• Men who walked eight-14 hours per week had about one-third lower risk of stroke than men who spent zero-three hours walking each week.
• The risk was about two-thirds lower for those walking more than 22 hours a week.
• 42 percent walked for more than eight hours per week while 9 percent walked for more than 22 hours per week.
• Men who walked zero-three hours per week had 80 strokes per 10,000 person years and men who walked eight-14 hours per week had 55 strokes per 10,000 person years.  http://newsroom.heart.org/news/older-men-who-walk-daily-may-lower-their-stroke-risk