Walk your way to a better mood

''Walking is a man's best medicine," said Hippocrates over 2,000 years ago - and scientific evidence suggests he was right.

According to one study of 334,000 people by the University of Cambridge, just 20 minutes a day cuts your risk of premature death by almost a third.

And if that isn't enough to persuade you to go for a stroll, then perhaps the following will spur you into action:

WALKING FIGHTS DEMENTIA

The latest evidence on the power of walking comes from Canada, where researchers discovered a link between cognitive brain function and low-level aerobic exercise in people with a form of dementia.

A group of 38 adults who suffer from vascular cognitive impairment - a cause of dementia - were monitored for six months. Those who regularly took brisk strolls over the period, amounting to three hours of exercise a week, displayed improved levels of brain function.

IT LOWERS THE RISK OF DYING FROM CANCER

Two recent studies, presented at the American Society for Clinical Oncology conference in Chicago, suggest that walking can be a potent weapon in the battle against cancer.

The first study showed that women who walk for 180 minutes a week after being diagnosed with breast cancer were roughly half as likely to die from the disease than those who didn't, over an eight-year period. The second study uncovered similar findings, this time for people who had bowel cancer.

IT HELPS YOUR HEART

Most benefits relate to the simple fact that walking gets the blood pumping without putting undue strain on the cardiovascular system (there's evidence to suggest that sustained running, in comparison, has little affect on mortality rates).

Studies performed between 1970 and 2007 found that regular walking reduced the likelihood of cardiovascular events (angina, heart attack, heart failure, coronary artery bypass surgery, angioplasty and stroke) by 31%. Among men, the risk of suffering coronary heart disease decreased by 18% among those who walked for at least half an hour every day.

IT BOOSTS YOUR MOOD

Psychological experiments suggest that walking naturally boosts moods.

• This article was originally published in The Times.