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Researchers: No evidence exercise lengthens life

adreno

PR activist
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4,841

ahmo

Senior Member
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4,805
Location
Northcoast NSW, Australia
:):woot::thumbsup: Given we have no choice, this is a real good news story. Thank you adreno.
th
 
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15,786
I think most of the studies that have found decreased life span associated with less exercise, sitting too much, sleeping too much, not drinking wine, not drinking coffee, etc, etc, were simply showing that people with diminished health just suck at doing those things.

They were seeing a correlation in the studies, and making stupid assumptions about which was a cause and which was an effect.
 

Sidereal

Senior Member
Messages
4,856
This seems to be the paper: http://www.nature.com/articles/srep18259

Observational studies report a strong inverse relationship between leisure-time physical activity and all-cause mortality. Despite suggestive evidence from population-based associations, scientists have not been able to show a beneficial effect of physical activity on the risk of death in controlled intervention studies among individuals who have been healthy at baseline. On the other hand, high cardiorespiratory fitness is known to be a strong predictor of reduced mortality, even more robust than physical activity level itself. Here, in both animals and/or human twins, we show that the same genetic factors influence physical activity levels, cardiorespiratory fitness, and risk of death. Previous observational follow-up studies in humans suggest that increasing fitness through physical activity levels could prolong life; however, our controlled interventional study with laboratory rats bred for low and high intrinsic fitness contrast with these findings. Also, we find no evidence for the suggested association using pairwise analysis among monozygotic twin pairs who are discordant in their physical activity levels. Based on both our animal and human findings, we propose that genetic pleiotropy might partly explain the frequently observed associations between high baseline physical activity and later reduced mortality in humans.
 

adreno

PR activist
Messages
4,841
Rats genetically predisposed to lower cardiovascular fitness who started to exercise as adults actually shortened their lives by an average of 16 percent compared to those with similar genes who did not exercise.

It sucks to have bad genes. But again, the main point of this study (for me at least) is that health/longevity is not a choice.

However, exercise favorably changes gene expression, so why doesn't it help? Perhaps the increased oxidative stress outweighs any benefits on gene expression?
 

helen1

Senior Member
Messages
1,033
Location
Canada
So this would indicate that the pockets of longevous people around the world may be due more to genes than to lifestyle, diet etc. I was pretty convinced by the blue zones book showing the importance of strong social networks and meaningful work in old age as in those high centenarian communities. (Sardinia, part of Costa rica, part of Japan, 7th day Adventists.)

But the genetic link to longevity would not apply much to the Seventh-day Adventists, as they are not genetically related to one another. Lifestyle must have some effect; eg not smoking.
 

cmt12

Senior Member
Messages
166
It sucks to have bad genes. But again, the main point of this study (for me at least) is that health/longevity is not a choice.

However, exercise favorably changes gene expression, so why doesn't it help? Perhaps the increased oxidative stress outweighs any benefits on gene expression?
Well, since this is a thread about a presumed causal factor becoming a correlation, perhaps bad genes are also simply correlated with mortality rather than a cause of it. Or is questioning those types of assumptions and theories off limits?
 

helen1

Senior Member
Messages
1,033
Location
Canada
Just realized I wasn't very logical in my post above. Just because exercise doesnt appear to increase longevity doesn't mean other lifestyle factors don't.

Longevity is likely influenced by both lifestyle and genes, just maybe not exercise so much.
 

helen1

Senior Member
Messages
1,033
Location
Canada
Longevity is positively correlated with size of bank account--affluent people live longer.
Yes, and why is that, is it more access to medical services, is it better diet, less stress, less exposure to industrial toxins, less smoking, more leisure time or what?
 

Effi

Senior Member
Messages
1,496
Location
Europe
Yes, and why is that, is it more access to medical services, is it better diet, less stress, less exposure to industrial toxins, less smoking, more leisure time or what?
or a combination of all these factors?
 

IreneF

Senior Member
Messages
1,552
Location
San Francisco
Yes, and why is that, is it more access to medical services, is it better diet, less stress, less exposure to industrial toxins, less smoking, more leisure time or what?
In the US, I think it's access to medical care, followed by a more positive attitude toward taking care of one's self among the affluent. Richer people are thinner, get more exercise, and smoke less than poorer people.