What Happens If You Run Breathlessly Because You're Late for Work?... Cancer Risk Significantly Decreases

"Research Shows 'Intense Activity Over 3 Minutes Has Significant Effects'
Researchers Advise 'Small Exercises in Daily Life Are Helpful'"

A study has found that actions such as running or quickly climbing stairs while rushing to work can reduce the risk of cancer, drawing attention.

On the 17th (local time), US media outlets CNBC and The Washington Post (WP) reported on research results from the Charles Perkins Centre at the University of Sydney, Australia, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Oncology (JAMA Oncology).

The researchers tracked and analyzed the activities of more than 22,000 people. This study was based on previous statistics showing that vigorous exercise that increases respiratory volume can lower cancer incidence rates.

Office workers commuting in Seoul Photo by Yonhap News

As a result, it was confirmed that engaging in at least 3 minutes of vigorous physical activity daily, such as quickly climbing stairs or rushing to catch the subway, is beneficial in suppressing cancer development.

The researchers stated, “Their risk of developing cancer was 17% to 18% lower, and for one of 13 types of cancer, the risk dropped by nearly 30%.”

Previous studies have also explored the association between physical activity and reduced cancer incidence. In 2022, research showed that 3% of the 46,356 annual cancer cases in the US could be prevented through exercise.

However, these findings mostly applied to people who exercise for more than 30 minutes almost every day. This is also the minimum exercise time recommended by federal health authorities.

The researchers emphasized, “The notion that you need to set aside 30 minutes to exercise is not true. Moving at a high intensity in daily life, separate from formal exercise, can be a good alternative and can reduce cancer risk in the long term.” They added, “This is similar to applying the principles of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) to everyday life.”

Tracy Crane, who is in charge of health and lifestyle medicine at the University of Miami Cancer Center, also pointed out, “While it is good to exercise about 150 minutes a week to maintain health, most people do not exercise that much.”

However, Kathleen Schmitz, a professor of exercise oncology at the Hillman Cancer Center at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, said, “This is a very provocative finding,” but also noted, “People tend to prefer light activities, so it may be difficult to persuade them to move vigorously even for just a few minutes.”

In response, Crane said, “Small exercises in daily life, such as using stairs or parking farther away to walk a bit more, will be very helpful.”

She added, “But don’t move leisurely and slowly; walk quickly as if you are going to meet someone you want to see soon.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.