Did you know that small actions in our daily lives can contribute a lot to maintaining our health? These practices can be beneficial even when there is no time for physical activity. The simple act of climbing stairs, for example, can be incredibly beneficial.
Although it may seem like a small gesture, including these practices in our daily routine is a way to fight against a sedentary lifestyle and its consequences. According to a study published in the journal Atherosclerosis, climbing more than five flights of stairs daily, approximately 50 steps, can reduce the risk of atherosclerosis (accumulation of cholesterol plaques on artery walls) by 20%.
“Representing as the main cause of death in the West and among the most responsible for the occurrence of heart attacks and strokes, atherosclerosis is characterized by the narrowing and stiffening of arteries due to the accumulation of fatty plaques inside them, thus damaging adequate blood flow”explains plastic surgeon Dr. Beatriz Lassance.
What are the advantages of climbing stairs?
Those responsible for the study collected data from 450,000 adults, whose susceptibility to cardiovascular diseases was calculated based on family history and established risk factors. Additionally, participants were interviewed about their lifestyle and how often they climbed stairs.
A new analysis was also carried out after 12 years. Therefore, it was possible to conclude that climbing more stairs daily is capable of reducing the risk of atherosclerosis regardless of the individual’s susceptibility to the disease.
“The study showed that short sessions of high-intensity stair climbing are an efficient way to improve cardiorespiratory conditioning and lipid profile, especially for those who cannot reach the ideal daily physical activity recommendations, thus highlighting the habit as a preventive measure accessible against atherosclerosis for the general population”, highlights the doctor.
Specialist Dr. Beatriz Lassance explains that climbing stairs is also part of the pre-operative recommendations that plastic surgeons make to their patients as a way to help combat inflammation common in surgical procedures, for example.
“Climbing stairs is a way of using up the energy produced by mitochondria, which are organelles that exist inside our cells and are responsible for transforming glucose into energy. If this energy is not spent, there is an accumulation of free radicals in cells that threaten their survival. Then, DNA eliminates this mitochondria, generating waste such as free radicals and other substances that promote inflammation in the body as a whole”, says the doctor.
The professional also states that this inflammatory condition affects the blood vessels, favoring cardiovascular diseases, the brain, predisposing to neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s; increases the incidence of cancer and diabetes; and harms the skin, interfering with healing and postoperative recovery.
“On the other hand, if we use the energy produced, an adequate amount of free radicals are formed and more mitochondria are generated. This is the best antioxidant system we can have,” he says.
