According to a study published in Nature Cardiovascular Research, men need to exercise twice as much as women to reap similar heart health benefits.
To explore sex differences in the relationship between physical activity and coronary heart disease, Chinese researchers analysed data from 80,243 men and women in the UK Biobank who were free of heart disease at the start of the study, along with 5,169 participants who already had the condition.
Physical activity levels were tracked using wrist-worn activity monitors over one week, and participants were followed for a median of nearly eight years.
The results revealed a clear advantage for women. Women who met the recommended exercise guideline of 150 minutes per week had a 22 per cent lower risk of heart disease, compared with a 17 per cent reduction in men.
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To reduce their risk of heart disease by 30 per cent, men needed to get 530 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous exercise each week, while women achieved the same benefit with just 250 minutes—less than half the time.
Among participants with existing coronary heart disease, meeting activity guidelines was linked to a threefold reduction in all-cause mortality in women compared with men.
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The findings challenge the one-size-fits-all approach to physical activity, suggesting that gender-specific exercise guidelines may help both men and women optimise their cardiovascular health.