Physical Activity News and Research

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Hourly movement breaks effectively counter harms of prolonged sitting

Hourly movement breaks of just 5 minutes each seem to offer the best balance between feasibility and effectiveness for mitigating the health harms of prolonged sitting, suggests a large study carried out under real world conditions and published online in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

24 Jun 2026

Eating 90 g of wholegrains daily linked to lower breast cancer risk

Research indicates that long-term wholegrain intake per Nordic guidelines is associated with reduced breast cancer risk, emphasizing food type differences.

24 Jun 2026

Plant-based Mediterranean-style diet cuts heart disease risk by 26%

A 20-year study links plant-based Mediterranean diets to lower heart disease risk, highlighting the importance of sustainable eating for cardiovascular health.

24 Jun 2026

Strength training plus cardio cuts type 2 diabetes risk the most

A 20-year prospective cohort study of 143,715 US healthcare professionals found that long-term resistance training was associated with a substantially lower risk of type 2 diabetes. The lowest risk was seen among participants who combined regular resistance training with adequate aerobic activity and limited TV viewing.

23 Jun 2026

Colorectal cancer cases rise among younger adults in Germany

Colorectal cancer is generally considered a disease of older adults. However, a new analysis of German cancer registries shows that the number of new colorectal cancer cases among younger adults has risen slightly over the past two decades.

23 Jun 2026

Circadian rhythm influences calorie burning after eating

Han-Chow Koh, PhD, and Frank A.J.L. Scheer, PhD, of the Medical Chronobiology Program at the Division of Sleep and Circadian Medicine in the Mass General Brigham Department of Medicine, are the co-lead and senior author, respectively, of a paper published in Metabolism, "Constant-routine protocol reveals an endogenous circadian rhythm in diet-induced thermogenesis with a peak in the biological morning."

23 Jun 2026

Curtin University projects explore youth health issues in Western Australia

Curtin University Curtin University researchers will examine the 'partygoing' behaviours of young people in regional areas, the use of nicotine pouches and ways to promote physical activity among young people as part of new projects funded by Healthway.

23 Jun 2026

The menstrual cycle changes heart-rate variability but not strength

Menstrual cycle phases influence heart autonomic regulation, showing HRV variations, yet muscle performance and mood states remain largely unchanged.

23 Jun 2026

Study links neuroimmune dysregulation to complex fibromyalgia symptoms

Fibromyalgia is a complex disorder characterized primarily by chronic widespread pain, fatigue and other physical and cognitive symptoms.

22 Jun 2026

Sugary drinks from childhood linked to adult hypertension risk

Drinking fruit juice and sugar-sweetened beverages from childhood through adulthood may be linked to an increased risk of developing high blood pressure as an adult, according to new research published today in the American Heart Association's flagship journal Circulation.

22 Jun 2026

Estradiol changes may shape how much women move during the menstrual cycle

A 28-day wearable-sensor study of 26 healthy naturally menstruating women found that active energy expenditure varied across the menstrual cycle and was higher in the early follicular phase than the late follicular phase.

21 Jun 2026

Poll reveals gaps in brain health awareness among older adults

Nearly all Michiganders age 50 and over say it's very important to keep their brains healthy as they grow older, a new poll finds.

18 Jun 2026

Forward bending at work may raise miscarriage risk during pregnancy

Bending forwards, and to a lesser extent, walking a lot at work in early pregnancy, may raise the risk of miscarriage, finds a large study of more than 470,000 Danish women, published online in the journal Occupational & Environmental Medicine.

18 Jun 2026

Obesity genes have stronger impact on modern generations

People who carry genetic variations linked to obesity are more likely to be heavier now than individuals with the same variants who were born before the recent obesity epidemic.

18 Jun 2026

Study links menopause and hormone therapy status to modifiable health behaviors

Menopause is associated with a number of adverse health effects, some of which can be mitigated by an array of modifiable health behaviors (MHBs), including diet, exercise, and sleep duration.

18 Jun 2026

Resistance training reduces major heart disease risk for active women

Women who lift weights may have a lower risk of major heart disease, especially when combined with aerobic exercise, according to a new study published today in JACC, the flagship journal of the American College of Cardiology.

17 Jun 2026

Smartphone apps and wearables help heart disease patients stay active

Smartphone apps, fitness trackers and wearable devices help people with heart disease get more physical activity in their daily lives, according to an analysis of previous research published today in the Journal of the American Heart Association, an open-access, peer-reviewed journal of the American Heart Association.

17 Jun 2026

Age-related muscle loss linked to increased tumor growth

Duke-NUS scientists have discovered that aging muscle may contribute to cancer growth by releasing fewer extracellular vesicles, tiny particles that cells use to communicate with one another.

16 Jun 2026

Semaglutide, omega-3s and diet shift epigenetic aging clocks in human studies

A systematic review identified 41 human studies evaluating interventions targeting next-generation DNA methylation-based aging clocks. Pharmaceutical, lifestyle, supplement, clinical, and psychosocial interventions shifted some clock outputs, but these biomarkers remain investigational rather than proven clinical surrogates.

16 Jun 2026

Global study links rising obesity to premature heart disease deaths

Researchers are warning that obesity is reshaping the global cardiovascular disease crisis, as trend data covering 204 countries reveal that heart disease now peaks in people aged 50-54 rather than the elderly and increasingly in South Asia, where rates have grown more than three times faster than global averages, according to a study being presented Monday at ENDO 2026, the Endocrine Society's annual meeting in Chicago, Ill.

15 Jun 2026