Swimming for a Longer Life?
One of the things that Dr. Steven Blair* did in his keynote at the World Aquatic Health Conference several years ago was ask a simple question: Does swimming reduce our risk of dying?
And the answer, Dr. Blair believes, is pretty simple: yes!
Dr. Blair then shared findings** that offer some of the most compelling reasons that swimming is something that everyone should do.
Let’s start with the basic fact that swimming is physical exercise. And while those who swim tend to love longer than those who don’t exercise (lead a sedentary lifestyle), it’s never been proven that swimmers accomplish this more often than those who do other types of exercise such as walking or jogging. So let’s back up a little and talk about how exercise in general reduces our risk of dying.
It’s pretty conclusive from Dr. Blair’s findings that any activity (including swimming) is very good for us. Higher levels of physical activity decrease potential for cardiovascular disease and cancer. These benefits decrease the risk of dying.
Those who don’t exercise have increased risk of chronic diseases, diabetes, some forms of cancer and suffering a heart attack. Sedentary people carry twice the risk of mortality than those who are active.
Without a doubt, people who are physically active live longer than those who don’t.
There is mounting evidence that people who are physically active not only live longer, but also retain physical function far longer into their lives than do those who do not exercise. There is also some evidence that physical activity contributes to retention of brain function.
How important is physical activity? Well, even though obesity is devastating to health and has reached national epidemic proportions, research shows that carrying excess weight isn’t as great a threat as a sedentary lifestyle.
Dr. Blair published a paper in 1996 examining obesity and fitness and it indicated that someone who is obese but fit is at far less risk of chronic disease than a thin person who is not fit. It is a fact that unfit people who are at “normal” weight are about twice as likely to die as obese people who exercise regularly – proving that fatness and fitness are two totally different things. We all know someone who is skinny and unhealthy. So why isn’t it possible for someone who is fat to be healthy?
Yes. The issue is fitness.
Exercise is a life-lengthening investment. So why might swimming be a better exercise to carry us into old age in a more healthy state?
First of all, swimming is the only physical exercise that can save our lives in water-related crises.
Secondly, because swimming enables the body to float. People who cannot do land bound exercises very well because of joint or balance issues can swim – and often without pain or danger of injury from falls. Because of this “buoyancy,” swimming is also useful in recovery from various types of injuries. Therapeutic exercises can be done in a weightless state with little to no stress on joints and bones.
Thirdly, water has a psychological healing effect on us by calming and energizing us. It even promotes cognitive activity that sharpens our minds.
These simple facts make swimming an activity that can take us from infant to elderly – allowing us to exercise to maintain our good health all along the way.
Choosing swimming is choosing an activity that has saving graces: by making us more physically fit, helping us maintain cognitive sharpness and by preventing us from drowning.
*Dr. Steven N. Blair is Professor in the Departments of Exercise Science and Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the Arnold School of Public Health at the University of South Carolina.
**Findings cannot be considered conclusive because the sampling was relatively small. They do show enough evidence to inspire further study.
Conversations