Long-term physical inactivity linked to higher stress burden in midlife

The health benefits of physical activity are well established, but the relationship between long-term physical activity and cumulative stress in the body has been studied less extensively.

A study conducted in collaboration between the University of Oulu and the Oulu Deaconess Institute Foundation sr. shows that exercise habits at different stages of adulthood influence how much long-term stress burden has accumulated in the body by midlife.

The study followed more than 3,300 individuals from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 from the age of 31 to 46. Participants’ leisure-time physical activity was examined in relation to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) physical activity recommendations. In addition, so-called allostatic load was measured, describing the strain imposed on the body by long-term stress.

According to the results, individuals who did not meet the health-enhancing physical activity recommendations during the follow-up period had a higher stress burden in midlife than those who were physically active in line with the recommendations. A decline in physical activity during adulthood was also associated with increased stress burden.

By contrast, individuals who increased their level of physical activity during adulthood did not differ in terms of stress burden from those who had remained physically active.

“The results suggest that the importance of physical activity is not limited to individual life stages; rather, regular exercise throughout adulthood may protect the body from the harmful effects of long-term stress,” says doctoral researcher Maija Korpisaari.

In the study, stress burden was assessed using both broader and narrower combinations of biological measures. The results were largely consistent regardless of the indicator used, strengthening the reliability of the findings.

Physical activity as part of stress management

The study provides new evidence that physical activity may be a key factor in preventing the long-term effects of stress.

“In terms of stress burden, both the amount of physical activity in youth and in adulthood are important. Regular physical activity in adulthood appears to help the body cope with stress even into midlife,” Korpisaari says.

According to the researchers, further longitudinal studies are needed to more precisely assess the use of different stress indicators and to understand how physical activity affects the body’s stress systems at different stages of the life course.

The results of the study have been published in the scientific journal Psychoneuroendocrinology. Association of longitudinal changes in physical activity with allostatic load in midlife.