Physical Activity News and Research

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ACLM launches project remission for Type 2 diabetes

The American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM) announces the launch of Project Remission: A Lifestyle Medicine Approach to Type 2 Diabetes, a national digital film series developed in partnership with Content With Purpose (CWP).

31 Mar 2026

How video gaming may shape sleep, diet, and activity across the lifespan

This narrative review found that video gaming can have both benefits and risks for health across the lifespan. It may provide short-term stress relief and social connection, but frequent or prolonged gaming is also associated with sedentary behaviour, poorer sleep, disrupted eating patterns, and lower diet quality, with effects shaped by age, sex, timing, content, and motivation.

31 Mar 2026

How gut imbalance may drive obesity, diabetes, and heart disease

A new review argues that gut dysbiosis is closely linked to metabolic dysfunction through intertwined effects on inflammation, oxidative stress, gut barrier integrity, microbial metabolites, and epigenetic regulation. It also highlights microbiome-targeted strategies such as high-fiber diets, probiotics, prebiotics, postbiotics, exercise, and fecal microbiota transplantation as promising ways to support metabolic health.

30 Mar 2026

How do diet, smoking, alcohol, and stress reshape the female microbiome?

This review examines how modifiable lifestyle and environmental factors shape the female vaginal, gut, oral, and skin microbiomes, with diet, alcohol, smoking, obesity, stress, hygiene, physical activity, and sexual behaviours all linked to site-specific microbial shifts. It argues that understanding these patterns could help guide future female-focused prevention and intervention strategies.

30 Mar 2026

Short bursts of vigorous activity can lower risk of major diseases

People who get just a few minutes of vigorous activity daily are less likely to develop eight major diseases, including arthritis, heart disease and dementia, according to research published in the European Heart Journal today (Monday).

29 Mar 2026

Higher sugar intake raises gallstone risk in adults, study finds

A cross-sectional NHANES study of 8,975 U.S. adults found that higher total dietary sugar intake was associated with higher odds of gallstones, with each 100 g/day increase linked to a 41% rise after full adjustment. The findings suggest sugar intake may be a modifiable gallstone risk factor, but the study relied on self-reported gallstones and cannot establish causation.

29 Mar 2026

$Heart health linked to higher fracture risk in postmenopausal women$

Heart health linked to higher fracture risk in postmenopausal women

Postmenopausal women face a high risk of bone fractures. Due to declines in estrogen levels, which can lead to an increased risk of osteoporosis, even a low-impact fall can result in a serious hip, back or wrist injury.

27 Mar 2026

Updated heart guidelines urge earlier screening for high blood cholesterol

For the first time since 2018, a clinical guideline from the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association for screening and managing blood cholesterol levels has been updated and jointly published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and Circulation.

27 Mar 2026

Heavily processed foods may raise heart disease risk beyond poor nutrition alone

A 2026 review in Cardiology in Review reports that higher intake of ultra-processed foods is consistently associated with greater risks of cardiovascular disease, stroke, and cardiovascular mortality across cohort studies and meta-analyses. The paper also highlights plausible mechanisms involving gut dysbiosis, oxidative stress, and NF-κB-driven inflammation, with additives such as emulsifiers, preservatives, dyes, and sweeteners discussed as potential contributors.

26 Mar 2026

Men show major gaps in male fertility knowledge, study finds

A study of 156 adult men found that knowledge about male fertility was generally low across both medical and lifestyle-related topics, with only 5 of 25 questions answered correctly by most respondents. Older men, those with a medical background, and those with suspected or treated infertility tended to score higher, while supplement use was common despite limited fertility literacy.

26 Mar 2026

Healthy thymus gland linked to longer life and immune stability

The thymus is a small organ located in the upper chest that plays a central role in the immune system: it produces T cells - specialized immune cells that recognize and fight pathogens.

26 Mar 2026

Mentally active sitting linked to reduced risk of dementia

New research distinguishing between passive and mentally active sitting in association with dementia has found that adults who engaged in extended durations of mentally passive sedentary behaviors had a higher risk of dementia.

26 Mar 2026

New tool aims to support the delivery of whole-person care in everyday clinical practice

As whole-person care accelerates across the U.S. health care system, clinicians face a persistent and consequential gap: the lifestyle and upstream health factors that drive chronic disease remain largely unmeasured, undocumented, and uncompensated in health care data systems.

25 Mar 2026

Digital CBT reduces anxiety and improves recovery after heart attack

Digital CBT treatment reduced cardiac-related anxiety and improved patients' quality of life and physical function after a heart attack.

25 Mar 2026

Home cooking may help prevent dementia in seniors

Preparing a home cooked meal at least once a week may cut older people's risk of dementia by 30%, suggests research published online in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.

24 Mar 2026

Small, combined improvements to sleep, diet and physical activity may yield major heart benefits

New research shows that small improvements to sleep, diet quality, and physical activity, made in combination, are associated with a significantly reduced risk of major cardiovascular events such as stroke, heart attacks, and heart failure.

24 Mar 2026

Excessive screen time linked to worse cardiovascular risk factors

People who reported spending six or more hours on screens outside of school or work had worse blood pressure, cholesterol and body mass index (BMI) compared with those with more limited screen time, according to a study being presented at the American College of Cardiology's Annual Scientific Session (ACC.26).

24 Mar 2026

Breast reduction surgery is linked to lower diabetes and heart risk

Findings suggest breast reduction surgery is associated with lower long-term diabetes and cardiovascular risks, enhancing women's metabolic health.

24 Mar 2026

New cholesterol guidelines emphasize earlier risk assessment and prevention

New national guidance for managing cholesterol and other blood lipids emphasizes earlier risk assessment, more personalized treatment, and long-term prevention—including, in some cases, treatment beginning as early as age 30.

23 Mar 2026

Early adulthood hypertension linked to heart and kidney disease later in life

Higher blood pressure during young adulthood is likely linked to a higher risk of heart disease and kidney disease later in life, reinforcing the importance of maintaining healthy blood pressure at younger ages, according to preliminary research presented at the American Heart Association's EPI|Lifestyle Scientific Sessions 2026.

23 Mar 2026