Regular exercise is always good and even if performed in areas with air pollution, it can reduce the risk of death from natural causes, claimed a new research.
The Canadian Medical Association Journal published the study. The researchers concluded their findings over a long period of study (over 15 years from 2001 to 2016). They held the study in 384130 adults in Taiwan and looked into the effects of regular exercise and longterm exposure to fine particle matter on the risk of death from natural causes.
Author Dr. Xiang Qian Lao (Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, the Chinese University of Hong Kong), claimed that habitual exercise reduced the risk of death regardless of exposure to air pollution, and air pollution generally increased the risk of death regardless of habitual exercise. As such, the researcher called for promoting exercise as a health improvement strategy even for people residing in relatively polluted areas.
“We found that a high level of habitual exercise and a low level of exposure to air pollution was associated with lower risk of death from natural causes, whereas a low level of habitual exercise and a high level of exposure was associated with higher risk of death,” the authors said. Default
The researchers pointed out that further studies in this aspect was needed in areas with more severe air pollution to examine the applicability of the findings. “Our study reinforces the importance of air pollution mitigation, such as to reduce the harmful effects of air pollution and maximize the beneficial effects of regular exercise,” they said.
