Good News For Golf Lovers: Playing Golf Extends Life

According to a study from Europe's leading medical research institute, playing golf can prolong ones life by as much as five years. Golfers now have got another reason to swing balls into action and why not!

The study, conducted by the team of researchers from Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, on 300,000 golfers, revealed that there were many health benefits of playing the game, including a longer and healthier life.

The researchers found that the active golfers cut down their death rate by 40% regardless of sex, age and social group, which adds up an extra five years.

Many believe that playing golf does not involve much physical activity, however, golfers generally walking more than six km during a single 18-hole round burn about 1,000 calories.

Lead author, Anders Ahlbom feels that even though it is a low intensity game but it sure does have its own health benefits such as increasing cardiovascular capacity and improving lung capacity and blood flow.

Anders Ahlbom said, “A round of golf means being outside for four or five hours, walking at a fast pace for six to seven kilometres, something which is known to be good for health. People play golf into old age and there are also positive social and psychological aspects to the game that can be of help.”

Adding further he said that the longest lifespan increases came among golfers with blue collar economic backgrounds than with those from white collar backgrounds.

Though, the scientists do not exclude the fact that many other factors, such as maintaining a healthy lifestyle, are also behind the decreased death rate observed among golfers. However, the researchers believe it is likely that playing the game in itself has a significant impact on health.

The Swedish study also found that people with the lowest handicap (i.e the best golfers) had the lowest death rates and were also among the safe group and that overall golfers at any age were 47% less likely to die than their non-golfing, same-age counterparts.

“Maintaining a low handicap involves playing a lot, so this supports the idea that it is largely the game itself that is good for health,” Professor Ahlbom added.

The findings of the golf study were published in the latest issue of the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports.

Golf is a popular game played by people of all ages. You can play golf throughout your life unlike some other games which are based on age factor. Many old aged golfers have claimed that playing golf has helped them in keeping physically and mentally fit. The sport helps in strengthening the back and shoulders and helps to maintain spine rotation, necessary for a healthy back.

Interesting stuff : Many years ago in Scotland, a new game was invented. It was ruled 'Gentlemen Only Ladies Forbidden' and thus, the word 'GOLF' entered the English language.