Gardening can significantly reduce the risk of heart attack in the over 60s crowd.
Researchers found those who were over and 60 and gardened could extend their lives by 30 percent, a British Medical Journal news release reported.
The activity proved to be as good at preventing strokes and heart conditions as conventional exercise.
The team studied 4,000 people in Sweden who were about 60 years old and tracked their heart health over a period of 12 and half years. The participants were screened for other health concerns such as smoking and alcohol use.
The participants were also asked how often they did a number of activities, such as gardening, over the previous 12 months.
The researchers then assessed the study subjects through lab tests and physical examinations.
Those who performed activities such as gardening on a regular basis were found to have just as low of a risk of cardiovascular problems as those who did more formal exercise.
"This profile included smaller waists, lower levels of potentially harmful blood fats, and lower gluose, insulin, and clotting factor levels in men," the news release reported.
Those who exercised regularly and also participated in daily physical activities such as gardening had the lowest health risk in the group. Those who participated in the highest levels of activity were 27 percent less likely to have a heart attack and 30 percent less likely to die from any cause.
Over the 12.5 years 476 participants had their first heart attack, 383 of the subjects passed a way from a variety of causes.
"Our findings are particularly important for older adults, because individuals in this age group tend, compared to other age groups, to spend a relatively greater proportion of their active day performing [routine activities] as they often find it difficult to achieve recommended exercise intensity levels," the authors said.
The researchers suggested the reason behind their findings could be energy expenditure.
"Prolonged sitting drives down metabolic rate to the bare minimum, while standing up and physical activity increase it," the news release reported.
Muscle contractions could also be involved in the study's findings. Sitting does not require muscle effort, and spending too much time not using the muscles can disrupt hormone production in the skeletal muscles.
