Another 'Eight Glasses of Water a Day'

By coincidence, two items I ran across this morning reminded me of unsolicited medical advice, and I hadn't even gotten to Trump's latest lunatic cabinet nominee.

Although I walk for an hour most days of the week, I had no idea that I was "supposed" to be taking 10,000 steps a day. (Maybe hectoring everyone over this is part of why Bobby K pushes "wearables.")

I'd heard the number before, but not being prone to health fads, I never bothered to look into it, and probably would have blown off anyone who suggested it.

Nevertheless, it's a thing, and it's been debunked:

Walking seems an unlikely exercise to generate debate. But as you point out, that's exactly what happened with the near-mythic 10,000 steps. This number was interpreted as the ideal amount of walking per day. That number actually comes from a Japanese advertising campaign that, in 1965, promoted a brand of pedometer. More recent studies have challenged the 10,000 steps, coming in both lower and higher. Now, new research suggests it's not total steps that matter most to heart health. It's the length of time spent walking at a steady pace that is most important. [bold added]

The two physicians addressing this claim explain more of the research support and reasoning behind that statement at the above link.

Before you say Good, now I won't have to hear that one any more, don't forget that eight glasses of water a day! has been debunked for quite some time, with periodic reminders bubbling up in the press now and again ... and again and again.

So, yes, you will hear get to hear that again.

For anyone who has trouble shutting down the kinds of nostrums MAHA wants you to hear about nonstop, the other, related piece I bumped into offers a graceful way to brush off unsolicited medical advice from the well-meaning. For more persistent types, the grey rock method might come in handy, but I hope it doesn't come to that for you.

-- CAV