Even light exercise such as walking can substantially reduce the risk of early death, the results of a new study indicate. Deirdre Condon,IrishHealth.com reports:

European researchers combined the results from the largest studies around the world on the health impact of light and moderate intensity physical activity.

They found that the largest health benefits from light or moderate activity, such as walking and cycling, were in people who do hardly any physical activity at all. Although more activity is better, the benefits of even a small amount of physical activity are very large in the least physically active.

According to the researchers from Sweden and the UK, the good news from the study is that you do not have to exercise like crazy to benefit from physical activity. Just achieving the recommended levels of physical activity - equivalent to 30 minutes per day of moderate intensity activity, five days a week - reduces the risk of death by 19%.

Meanwhile seven hours per week of moderate activity reduces the risk of death by 24% compared to no activity at all.

"This research confirms that it is not just exercising hard that is good for you, but even moderate everyday activities, like walking and cycling, can have major health benefits. Just walking to the shops or walking the children to school can lengthen your life, as well as bringing other benefits for wellbeing and the environment," the team said.

Details of these findings are published in the International Journal of Epidemiology.