Great news, active imbibers — a new study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that exercise can negate some of the health repercussions of regular drinking.
Researchers in the UK and Australia looked at a series of surveys of the British population, examining both the subject’s cancer mortality rates and their activity levels.
The study found a direct link between alcohol consumption and the risk of dying of cancer. But when subjects met the British recommendations for exercise (2.5 hours of physical activity per week) those risks were substantially reduced. They were further reduced if a subject exceeded the exercise recommendations.
Still, say researchers, you can’t exercise away the damages of a binge-drinking habit — an active lifestyle didn’t offset mortality risks for those who drank excessively, senior author Dr. Emmanuel Stamatakis tells CNN.
Hitting the bar before barre: Not such a bad idea after all.