Could beating prostate cancer be as easy as taking a daily walk with a loved one?
It sounds crazy, I know.
But research published in the journal Cancer Research shows that walking — not drugs, not surgery, not radiation — could be a major player in improving prostate cancer outcomes.
Walking briskly for three hours a week was shown to delay or prevent progression of prostate cancer. The researchers observed 1,455 men who had received diagnoses of prostate cancer that had not spread to other parts of the body.
The men were asked to track their physical activity. Examining the data, the researchers found that men who walked briskly for at least three hours a week lowered their rate of cancer progression.
And it wasn’t a small reduction, either. These men lowered their rate of progression by 57% when compared to men who walked at an “easy pace” for fewer than three hours a week.
So there’s the catch — this isn’t an easy after-dinner stroll we’re talking about here. Walking at an easy pace didn’t have any benefit. We’re talking about a nice brisk pace that really gets the legs moving.
Studying a separate group of men, the researchers found that men who engaged in vigorous exercise after cancer diagnosis also saw a reduced risk of dying from the disease.
So — if you’re fighting prostate cancer, get out into the fresh air . Grab someone you love, lace up those walking shoes, and get moving. You’ll increase your chances of beating the cancer, and you’ll also harness the other health benefits of walking, like a stronger heart! (FSP Health)
