We all know that walking has a plethora of health benefits. It’s also a cheap date idea for those who want to be thrifty. But recently, it has been linked to the “decrease in the incidence of breast cancer in African American women.” So strap up your sneakers. It might be time for a jog.
The researchers at Boston University’s Slone Epidemiology Center in Massachusetts conducted a study on “the health of black women, the Black Women’s Health Study (BWHS).”
They found that women who exercised vigorously for seven or more hours each week were 25% less likely to develop breast cancer, compared to those who exercised less than 1 hour each week.
Such types of exercise included playing “basketball, swimming, running, and aerobics. The results were similar if women walked briskly, but there was no benefit for walking at normal pace. The results did not differ by the estrogen receptor status of the breast cancer.” According to Lynn Rosenberg, ScD, a professor of Epidemiology at Boston University School of Public Health, this was “the first large scale study to support that vigorous exercise may decrease incidence of breast cancer in African American women.” So run and tell #bae or your homegirl that you might want to take a stroll through the park this weekend, just in case.