Research indicates that replacing 10 minutes of sedentary time every hour with light exercise can substantially reduce blood pressure in children and young adults. This points to a potential strategy for mitigating risks associated with prolonged sedentariness.
By breaking up long periods of inactivity with light physical activity, children and young adults can significantly reduce their blood pressure, a new study published in the Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle has found.
Researchers from the University of Eastern Finland, led by Andrew Agbaje, alongside University of Bristol and University of Exeter, tracked 2,513 children from the University of Bristol’s “Children of the 90s” cohort, following them from age 11 to 24.
Their findings suggest that increased sedentary time contributes to higher systolic blood pressure. However, replacing just 10 minutes of each sedentary hour with light physical activity (LPA) could dramatically lower systolic blood pressure.
“Furthermore, when 10 minutes out of every hour spent sedentary was replaced with an equal amount of LPA from childhood through young adulthood in a simulation model, systolic blood pressure decreased by 3 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure by 2 mmHg. This is significant, as it has been reported in adults that a systolic blood pressure reduction of 5 mmHg decreases the risk of heart attack and stroke by 10%,” Agbaje, an associate professor of clinical epidemiology and child health at the University of Eastern Finland, said in a news release.
The Data at a Glance
At the onset of the study, the identified children were spending approximately six hours per day being sedentary. By the time they reached adulthood, this number had increased to nine hours.
Concurrently, their involvement in light physical activity dropped by half — from six to three hours per day. Their engagement in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) hovered around 50-55 minutes across both periods.
Persistent sedentary behavior over these formative years was associated with a 4 mmHg excess increase in systolic blood pressure. On the other hand, substituting some of this sedentary time with light physical activity led to a reduction of 3 mmHg in systolic blood pressure.
Uncovering the Significance
“We have earlier shown that elevated blood pressure and hypertension in adolescence increase the risk of premature cardiac damage in young adulthood. The identification of childhood sedentariness as a potential cause of elevated blood pressure and hypertension with LPA as an effective antidote is of clinical and public health significance,” added Agbaje.
The implications of such findings are profound, especially since previous MVPA-based interventions had not successfully reduced blood pressure. According to Agbaje, increased muscle mass induced by MVPA might stimulate physiological changes leading to higher blood pressure, explaining why those interventions fell short.
Charting a Way Forward
Considering the World Health Organization’s projection of 500 million new cases of physical inactivity-related non-communicable diseases by 2030, with half related to hypertension, promoting light physical activity from a young age emerges as a critical public health measure.
“At least three hours of LPA per day is critical to preventing and reversing elevated blood pressure and hypertension. Examples of LPA are long walks, house chores, swimming and bicycling. We all, parents, pediatricians and policymakers included, should encourage children and adolescents to participate in LPA to keep their blood pressure in a healthy range,” Agbaje concluded.
This groundbreaking study offers a potentially simple yet effective strategy to alleviate the burgeoning issue of hypertension beginning from childhood.