Studies show that regular activity can help to keep our hormone levels healthy, which is important as having high levels of some hormones can increase our cancer risk.
Physical activity may also strengthen our immune system, help keep our digestive system healthy and allow us to consume more food - and more cancer-protective nutrients - without gaining weight.
The personal recommendations, meant for people, as communities, families, and individuals are:
1. Be moderately physically active - equivalent to brisk walking for at least 30 minutes every day.
2. As fitness improves, aim for 60 minutes or more of moderate, or for 30 minutes or more of vigorous, physical activity every day.
3. Limit sedentary habits such as watching television.
What is moderate activity?
Moderate activity is anything that gets your heart beating a bit faster and makes you breathe more deeply. You need not set aside specific amounts of time to do these activities because shorter bouts of activity are just as beneficial. It's the total time that's important.
There is a wide range of these activities that you can do, some of which you can build into your daily activities, such as walking briskly, swimming, dancing, walking up the stairs instead of taking the elevator and doing housework briskly.
What is vigorous activity?
Vigorous activity means raising our heart rates so that we warm-up, start to sweat and feel out of breath.
If you want to make vigorous activity a regular part of your life, it's important to find something that is fun and accessible. Good examples include jogging, hill walking, fast cycling, aerobics classes, working out at the gym, for example running on the treadmill, and team games like football.
This story was extracted from NutriScene. NutriScene is a fortnightly column by Dr Tee E Siong, who pens his thoughts as a nutritionist with over 30 years of experience in the research and public health arena. For further information, e-mail starhealth@thestar.com.my.
Do check with a health professional before embarking on a fitness programme. The Star and AsiaOne disclaim all responsibility for any losses, damage to property or personal injury suffered directly or indirectly from reliance on the information provided in this story.
This story was first published in The Star on Oct 19, 2008.
