I was skeptic, so I looked at the related paper: https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/early/2019/09/25/bjsports-2018-100493 https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/early/2019/09/2

I was skeptic, so I looked at the related paper: https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/early/2019/09/25/bjsports-2018-100493 https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/early/2019/09/25/bjsports-2018-... It looks like a fairly good systematic review and meta-analysis. Their "Assessment of study and evidence quality" seems quite comprehensive, and they filtered out several studies affected by selection bias. They mention the causation possibility: > the association between running and mortality may partially be explained by assuming that sick participants (who are more likely to die) were less likely to participate in running. Still, even if "running" isn't a direct cause for increase longevity, we can't rule out that more promotion of running would have positive effects (placebo effect, have unhealthy people use running as a keystone habit to build other healthy habits, etc). What I'd love to see is more meta-analysis like this one for other sports. I believe that running is known for its orthopedic stress risks, and other sports like swimming might be seen to deliver the same positive effects as running, without the negative impacts.