We all are aware of the fact that improving fitness level is known to have a positive impact on medical conditions such as heart disease. And now, a new study has found that adults who maintain high-level fitness have the lowest risk of developing lung cancer and colorectal cancer when compared with those who have low-level fitness.
The team of researchers looked at more than 49,000 adults who underwent exercise stress testing between 1991 and 2009. They were followed for more than 7 years.
Following are the results of the study found by the investigators:
- those who were under the highest level of fitness category had a 77 percent decreased risk of developing lung cancer and a 61 percent decreased risk of developing colorectal cancer
- among adults who developed lung cancer, those with the highest fitness had a 44 percent decreased risk of dying during follow-up
- among adults who developed colorectal cancer, those with the highest fitness had an 89 percent decreased risk of dying during follow-up
The results were published in the journal Cancer.
Study author and assistant professor at Johns Hopkins University Dr. Catherine Marshall said, “Our findings are one of the first, largest, and most diverse cohorts to look at the impact of fitness on cancer outcomes.” “Fitness testing is commonly done today for many people in conjunction with their doctors,” said Dr. Marshall. “Many people might already have these results and can be informed about the association of fitness with cancer risk in addition to what fitness levels mean for other conditions, like heart disease.”
