Name: 7,000 steps can reduce risk of depression: BBC Learning English from the News
Uploaded: 2024-12-18T14:29:31.000Z
Duration: 8 min 10 s
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Learning English from the News, our podcast about the news headlines.

In this programme, 7,000 steps a day can reduce your risk of depression,

In this programme, we look at one big news story and the vocabulary in the headlines that will help you understand it.

You can find all the vocabulary and headlines from this episode, as well as a worksheet, on our website, bbclearningenglish.com.

People who have a higher daily step count – that's the number of steps you walk per day – have a lower risk of depression, according to a new meta-analysis.

Yes, a meta-analysis is a study that pulls together the results of lots of different research projects.

But walking improves mental health, isn't that something we already knew?

Well, previous research had found that walking more was linked to better heart health and a longer life in general, but this new study might add mental health to that list too.

The authors suggest that a daily active lifestyle might help to lower the risk of depression in adults.

This one is from The Times in the UK, 7,000 steps to happiness – how a daily stroll can fight depression.

And that headline again from The Times, 7,000 steps to happiness – how a daily stroll can fight depression.

Now, this headline is about this new study's suggestion that a daily stroll could be good for our mental health.

Daily means you do it every day, but Beth, we're looking at this word stroll. What can you tell us about it?

Well, stroll is another word for walk, but it's a bit more specific.

It means to walk in a relaxed, leisurely way.

So what do you think is more important when you're strolling, Georgie?

Well, you said stroll is about relaxing, so I guess we walk for the experience of walking. And Beth, how is it used?

Well, in the headline it's a noun, a daily stroll, and we often hear the combination go for a stroll or let's go for a stroll.

Yes, and like the word walk, it's also used as a verb.

For example, I strolled through the city streets after work to wind down.

And we have a lot of different words for walking in a relaxing way, don't we?

Yes, we do. We have amble, saunter, meander and wonder.

No, Beth, we've got two more headlines to talk about.

We've had stroll, a relaxed, leisurely walk.

For example, we went for a stroll around the old town to admire the architecture.

This is Learning English from the News, our podcast about the news headlines.

Today we're talking about a new study linking a higher step count to lower risk of depression.

The study found that those who walked 7,000 daily steps had a much lower chance of depression than those who walked 5,000 daily steps or fewer.

This might mean that 7,000 steps is enough to have a positive effect on our mental health.

Which is fewer than the 10,000 steps that has been popularly thought of as the best number.

And that headline again from the Daily Mail.

Experts pinpoint the precise number of daily steps you need to take to beat depression.

OK, this headline is about the number of steps that are supposed to reduce your risk of depression.

Experts pinpoint the precise number is what the headline says.

And Georgie, I think it'll help if we break this word pinpoint down.

Yes, we've got pin, which is a very thin, sharp metal object.

And then we've got point, which in this context is the sharp end of that pin.

OK, now imagine a noticeboard with a big map on it.

If I gave you a pin and asked you to pinpoint London on the map, where would you put the pin?

Well, Beth, I would put the pin precisely in the middle of London.

So that is the literal meaning of pinpoint, to precisely locate something physically.

OK, but these researchers aren't locating things with a pin on a map.

Here, experts pinpoint the number is used metaphorically to mean identify something precisely.

And we often hear it in combination with problem, pinpoint a problem.

For example, we need to pinpoint the problem with the car before we can fix it.

We've had pinpoint, identify something precisely.

For example, it's difficult to pinpoint the moment when their friendship started to fall apart.

This is Learning English from the News from BBC Learning English.

We're talking about how increasing your daily steps may lower your risk of depression.

One of the study's authors says getting more daily steps promotes mental health by enhancing brain function, improving mood, reducing stress and encouraging positive behaviours.

But the authors also make it clear that just because people with a higher step count had a lower risk of depression, it doesn't mean that it's the 7,000 steps that cause that lower risk of depression.

Walking away from depression, how daily steps improve mental health.

We're interested in this phrasal verb, walk away from.

But you can't physically walk away from depression, like in the headline, can you?

Walk away from someone or something means to leave an unpleasant situation or person.

Yes, for example, walking away from a bad relationship means finally breaking up with someone who wasn't treating you well.

Yes, or you can walk away from a job you don't like by quitting.

So walk away from depression, metaphorically, means to not be depressed anymore.

But you may have noticed there's a double meaning here.

Yes, because we're talking about a study about walking to reduce the risk of depression, it has a literal meaning as well.

Literally walking to get rid of depression.

We've had walk away from someone or something, leave an unpleasant situation or person.

I had to finally walk away from my jewellery business because it wasn't making any money.

I didn't know you had a jewellery business.

That's it for this episode of Learning English from the News.

We'll be back next week with another news story.

And if you enjoyed learning that final phrasal verb, walk away from, we have a whole series on phrasal verbs.

Subtitles ListPlay Video

7,000 steps can reduce risk of depression: BBC Learning English from the News

episode

mental

depression

reveal