Why walking and art are good for the heart

Walking continuously for 10 to 15 minutes even if you are out of shape, or simply standing gazing at artworks in a gallery ― are both beneficial to health, two new studies show.

“For the most inactive people, switching from brief walks here and there to longer continuous walks may come with some health benefits,” said Dr Matthew Ahmadi from Sydney University, lead co-author of the walking research.

“There is a perception that health professionals have recommended walking 10,000 steps a day is the goal, but this isn’t necessary. Simply adding one or two longer walks per day, each lasting at least 10-15 minutes at a comfortable but steady pace, may have significant benefits — especially for people who don’t walk much,” he said.

The way you walk, not only the number of steps, count. Ten to 15 minutes of uninterrupted walking is better than strolls of under five minutes, the international study of physically inactive people (less than 8,000 steps) showed.

The risk of a heart attack or stroke dropped from 13% (among the below five-minute walkers) to 4% (10-15 minute walkers) among the 33,500 adults involved in the research, aged 40 to 79 years old.

The University of Sydney and Universidad Europea followed the adults for eight years for the peer-reviewed study, published in the Annals of International Medicine this week.

UCT biokineticist Tayla Ross said the sustained effort required for longer walks would improve cardiovascular fitness “which is an important predictor of mortality”.

But she added: “I am a huge advocate for ‘something is better than nothing’ when it comes to any form of exercise. So if someone works long hours at a desk and is unable to fit in longer bouts of exercise into their schedule, they would benefit far more from fitting in smaller bouts of exercise or activity when they can, compared to nothing at all.”

“Walking is an accessible way of exercising that requires no equipment or fancy gym memberships,” she said, noting however that the majority of South Africans walk in “very different settings and spaces compared to what we see at Sea Point promenade”.

UCT’s Prof Vicki Lambert, director of the Health through Physical Activity, Lifestyle and Sport (HPALS) Centre until she retired, noted that in highly unequal Global South countries like South Africa most of the walking people do is “not so much out of choice but rather a means of transport”.

I am a huge advocate for ‘something is better than nothing’ when it comes to any form of exercise.

—  Tayla Ross, UCT biokineticist

“As such, walking can often place individuals living in low-income or more disadvantaged settings at risk for personal safety and from traffic … We need to advocate for safer open and green public spaces, better lighting, better verges and sidewalks, and more equitable, walkable urban environments,” she said.

Ross said many South Africans with disabilities were excluded from safe activity. “Our sidewalks are not always wheelchair-friendly …This means an entire group of people are excluded from being able to walk or move around safely in these public spaces. Another thing we need to advocate for more.”

Run/Walk for Life International CEO Matthew Grossett said about 70% of their 32,000 members in South Africa were walkers. “Strolling and walking are very different, though of course you get benefits from both,” he said.

Grossett said people talk about 10,000 steps but not their intensity. “The 15 minutes will be even more beneficial if you are walking in your aerobic heart rate zone and you should still be able to hold a conversation [during the walk].”

The friendships that develop through walking and running together create “consistency among our members and keeps them coming back for more”, he said.

But movement isn’t the only way to improve your wellbeing. The art study is the first experimental evidence that viewing authentic artworks in a museum or gallery engages the body’s systems for stress and immune regulation in ways that are good for you. The paper is not yet peer-reviewed.

Courtney Worrell, from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King’s College London, led the study among 50 healthy adults aged 18 to 40, who were divided into two groups.

Half viewed five impressionist and post-impressionist artworks, including Van Gogh’s self-portrait with bandaged ear, for three minutes each in the gallery while half viewed high-quality reprints in a lab-setting.

Medical grade sensors measured their salivary cortisol (a stress hormone) and pro-inflammatory cytokines (if overactive they are damaging), heart rate, heart rate variability and skin temperature. The results of the gallery group were better than those in the lab group.

Worrell said their study “highlights museums and galleries as accessible settings for public-health interventions”.

These worlds of medicine and art are not exclusive as two initiatives in the Western Cape illustrate. Stellenbosch University’s Prof Faadiel Essop, from the division of medical physiology, led a collaboration inviting fine art students into their faculty, encouraging art and medical students “to explore the heart from both scientific and artistic perspectives”.

The HeartWorks exhibition, organised by Essop, Prof Kathryn Smith and Jonah Sack from Visual Arts, was on display earlier this month.

On Sunday the Western Cape Doctors Art Group, whose slogan is “medicine meets creativity” opened their annual exhibition in the foyer of Constantiaberg Mediclinic. The sale of their artworks has raised funds for Huis Horizon for more than 20 years. The art on display includes paintings, sketches, photographs and ceramics.

Many university art galleries and most major galleries in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban are free for those under 18, offer discounts to pensioners and/or have free entry at certain times.

As Renaissance man and artist, Leonardo da Vinci, said: “To develop a complete mind: study the science of art. Study the art of science. Learn how to see. Realise that everything connects to everything else.”