How Many Steps Daily Are Associated with Lower Mortality?

The public widely believes that 10,000 steps daily are necessary to achieve health benefits. To explore the optimal number of daily steps and stepping intensity required to promote health, researchers conducted an observational study of 16,700 women (mean age, 72) who used accelerometers for at least 10 hours daily and for at least 4 days at study entry. Participants were categorized into quartiles and assessed annually for a wide range of clinical and sociodemographic variables.

During a mean follow-up of 4.3 years, 504 women died. In adjusted analyses, mortality correlated inversely with number of daily steps (median steps/day, 5500). Compared with the least-active women (≈2700 steps/day), women in the second quartile (≈4400 steps/day) had…