With Summer well and truly here what better time to start taking regular doses of what was described more than 2000 years ago by the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates as ‘the best medicine a person can take.’
I’m talking about walking.
Yes the simplest of things can have the biggest of impacts on our physical and indeed mental health.
A couple of years ago I came across a fascinating short video on You Tube which succinctly showed what a huge benefit having a walk for 30 minutes every day can have on your life.
The video is called: “23 and 1/2 hours: What is the single best thing we can do for our health?” By Doctor Mike Evans.
It’s well worth ten minutes of your time and easily found on the internet.
Dr Evans makes a compelling case, supported by evidence on why walking is a wonder treatment for many people.
The video states just an hour of gentle exercise a week has been proven to reduce the risk of heart disease by almost 50%.
It also sites examples. Such as in Japan in the 1990´s, the Osaka Gas Company conducted a screening study to determine the effect on general health if its workers walked to work. It found:
- 11-20 minutes of daily walk – reduces risk of high blood pressure by 12%
- 21 minutes – reduces it by 29%
- And any increase in walking by a further 10 minutes– reduced it by 12%
According to the video walking also demonstrated a reduction in the progression of the following conditions and ailments.
- Knee Arthritis by 47%
- Dementia by 50%
- Post Menopausal women hip fracture by 41%
- Anxiety by 48%
- Depression by 30%
If foot or ankle pain is holding you back or hindering your walking efforts please contact us.
Firoz
