Official exercise recommendations from health authorities worldwide often emphasize moderate to vigorous physical activity.
For instance, the “Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans” recommends that adults should engage in at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity each week, according to the CDC.
However, these recommendations seem to overlook lower-intensity physical activities such as washing dishes, changing diapers, and public speaking…
All these tasks are considered light physical activities. We often do not view these as exercise, and public health guidelines do not account for them.
Light physical activities also include cleaning the house, cooking, and preparing food…
Washing dishes is often not considered exercise. (Illustrative Image).
However, at least one researcher believes that we should take these light physical activities more seriously.
Dr. Andrew Agbaje, a clinical epidemiologist at the University of Eastern Finland, stated: “Light physical activity seems to be the key to achieving health success on a global scale.”
“The Price to Pay” for Low Physical Activity
Any parent or teacher can tell you that children become less active as they grow older. A child jumping off a wall at 11 years old may move very little by age 24. But this is not necessarily their fault.
Dr. Agbaje explains: “We are, in a way, forcing them to sit still.” School, homework, and all other situations require children to remain seated. Conversely, their leisure time is increasingly screen-oriented, causing them to sit even longer.
In a recent study involving nearly 800 children, Dr. Agbaje measured changes in activity levels from ages 11 to 24.
The aim was to see how these changes affected C-reactive protein levels—a key marker of inflammation. Elevated levels of this protein can be an early warning sign of cardiovascular disease.
According to the new study, sedentary behaviors—sitting, sleeping, or hardly moving—have increased by nearly 3 hours per day among participants. (Illustrative Image)
Some notable findings from the study include:
- Moderate to vigorous physical activity levels of children did not change over time: approximately 60 minutes per day for boys and 45 minutes per day for girls at ages 11 and 24.
- Light physical activity decreased by about 3.5 hours per day.
- Sedentary behaviors—sitting, sleeping, or hardly moving—rose by nearly 3 hours per day.
- C-reactive protein levels significantly increased from age 15 (when it was first measured) to age 24, nearly doubling in males and tripling in females.
“The Silent Hero”
While sedentary behavior is closely linked to increased C-reactive protein levels, physical activity of any intensity is associated with reduced inflammation, according to the new research.
Moreover, researchers discovered another intriguing issue: The more body fat a person has, the less effective physical activity is at combating inflammation. Body fat reduces nearly 80% of the benefits from moderate to vigorous physical activity.
However, light physical activity is different—it only diminishes about 30% of the benefits from these activities.
Dr. Agbaje remarked: “Light physical activity is like a silent hero, which is surprising and new. We may need to focus on this in this generation.”
Dr. Agbaje said: “Light physical activity is like a silent hero.”
What Should We Do?
The message here is not to categorize every movement into high, moderate, or light intensity. Our activities often involve a mix of different intensities.
The goal is to engage in more activities.
Dr. Agbaje compares exercising to taking medication. Each person needs to adjust their exercise dosage to fit their needs, goals, and capabilities.
A strenuous workout for an average adult might qualify as a warm-up for a trained athlete. Meanwhile, an athlete’s warm-up could be dangerous for someone who is unprepared.
Dr. Agbaje advises that it’s best to move more whenever possible, even if it doesn’t feel like exercise.
The expert stated: “For everyone, light physical activity is safe. Just take a walk!”
