Five extra minutes of movement a day can save lives, study in The Lancet finds
Just five extra minutes of moderate intensity physical activity a day or sitting half an hour less could make a measurable difference for public health, according to a new study published in The Lancet.
Researchers analysed data from more than 135,000 adults in Norway, Sweden, USA, and the UK to understand how small, realistic changes in daily habits affect mortality. Using device-measured physical activity, the team estimated how many deaths could be prevented if people moved a little more or spent less time sitting.
The findings suggest that even modest changes matter. For the least active individuals, adding just five minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per day could prevent about 6% of deaths. When applied across the population—excluding the most active—this figure rises to 10%.
Reducing sedentary time also showed benefits, though smaller. Sitting 30 minutes less each day could prevent around 3% of deaths among the least active and 7% across the population.
“These results show that small steps can have a large impact,” says Maria Hagströmer, professor at the Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society and co-author of the study. “You don’t need to run marathons—just a few extra minutes of brisk walking each day can make a difference.”
Ing-Mari Dohrn, docent at the same department and also a co-author of the study, adds:
“Our study focuses on realistic changes. For many people, reducing sitting time or adding short bouts of activity is more achievable than large lifestyle modifications.”
The researchers emphasise that these changes are not a substitute for regular exercise but highlight how small adjustments can contribute to better health at the population level.
The study is a collaboration between researchers from Sweden (Karolinska Institutet, Uppsala University), Norway (Norwegian School of Sports Sciences, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Arctic University of Norway and University Hospital Oslo), Spain (University of Vigo, Pontevedra), Australia (The University of Sydney), and USA (Columbia University Medical Center, San Diego State University, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Harvard T H Chan School of Public Health and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School)
Funding: The individual studies contributing to this harmonised meta-analysis were funded in each country.
The researchers declare that there are no conflicts of interest.
Publication
”Deaths potentially averted by small changes in physical activity and sedentary time: an individual participant data meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies”
Ekelund U, Tarp J, Sanchez-Lastra MA, Dalene KE, Anderssen SA, Steene Johannessen S, Hansen BH, Morseth M. Hopstock MA, Sagelv E, Nordström P, Nordström A, Hagströmer M, Dohrn IM, Diaz KM, Hooker S, Howard VJ, Lee IM, Fagerland M. Deaths potentially averted by small changes in physical activity and sedentary time: an individual participant data meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies with up to 135,046 men and women. Lancet, online 14 January 2026, doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(25)02219-6.