Experts Determine Exact Number of Daily Steps You Need to Take to Beat Depression — Spoiler Alert: It’s NOT 10,000

Scientists have discovered for the first time the precise number of steps a person should take every day to reduce the risk of depression.

Experts found that higher numbers were linked to better mental health, in research examining 33 separate studies involving almost 100,000 adults using fitness trackers.

Intriguingly, however, the much-touted 10,000-step goal could be overstated, at least when it comes to improving mood, according to the analysis.

For the review, published today on Jama Network Open, the researchers sought to determine “the protective role of daily steps” in reducing low mood.

Scientific studies have shown that higher step counts are linked to better heart health and longer life, the experts claimed.

They added: ‘(But) to our knowledge, the link between number of daily steps… and depression has not been previously investigated.

‘Setting goals based on step count is easy to understand and integrate into daily routines and can be valuable… in depression prevention guidelines.’

Although a step count below 5,000 was associated with an increased risk of depression, those who reached 7,500 had a 42 percent risk reduction.

“Our findings… suggested that small doses of physical activity were associated with a reduced incidence of depression in adults,” they stated.

Benefits were seen up to a step count of 10,000, but beyond that there was no additional benefit.

The researchers said older adults or people with disabling conditions could benefit from fewer steps, claiming that ‘something is better than nothing’.

Earlier this year, physiology experts warned that more than 8,000 a day may not even provide ‘much additional benefit’ when it comes to reducing the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

Instead, walking faster in shorter bursts can be just as effective for staying healthy.

Lindsay Bottoms, an exercise and health physiology researcher at the University of Hertfordshire, told MailOnline that obsessively chasing the 10,000-a-day target would ‘certainly’ give people a false sense of security about how to stay healthy.

10,000 steps are approximately equivalent to five kilometers per day.

The 10,000 steps goal was initially designed by a Japanese marketing campaign for a pedometer in the wake of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics

Ms Bottoms added: ‘Counting steps is difficult and does not include those who cannot walk.

‘Research shows that fewer than 10,000 provide health benefits and that 10,000 steps is an arbitrary number.

‘It has been shown that taking just 4,400 steps improves life expectancy.

‘We need to encourage people to be active, so if someone regularly takes just 2,000 steps a day, a target of 4,000 is achievable.

“It would motivate them even more than a target of 10,000, which just isn’t going to happen.”

Professor Tom Yates, one of the world’s leading experts on physical activity and sedentary behavior at the University of Leicester, added: ‘Moderate amounts of physical activity can be extremely powerful when it comes to reducing the risk of premature mortality.

‘But going beyond these levels may not provide much additional benefit – at least in terms of mortality rates.

‘There are indications that the threshold is approximately 8,000 steps per day.’

In research examining 33 separate studies involving nearly 100,000 adults using fitness trackers, experts found that higher numbers were linked to better mental health

The 10,000 steps goal was initially designed by a Japanese marketing campaign for a pedometer in the wake of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.

At the time, there was an increasing focus on fitness in the host country and companies had tried to capitalize on the craze surrounding the Games.

One campaign involved the marketing of Yamasa’s pedometer, the Manpo-kei, which literally means ‘10,000 step meters’ in Japanese.

But this arbitrary figure was never scientifically substantiated. Instead, this number was chosen because the benchmark was memorable.