The importance of walking; the importance of talking; the importance of reducing loneliness; plus other stories with Vanderbilt Health sources

Summary: Vanderbilt Health experts are making headlines with simple daily habits that have a massive impact on your health. Dr. Evan Brittain found that walking just 1,700 to 5,500 extra steps a day can help prevent chronic issues like obesity, diabetes, and sleep apnea. When it comes to mental health, Dr. Aaron Brinen points out that simply being engaged in a conversation is much more important than what you are actually talking about.

This directly connects to a major study by Dr. Katherine Schafer, which shows that reducing loneliness can stop anxiety and depression from turning into suicidal thoughts. This is a huge deal, as it could help save many of the 48,000 lives lost to suicide in the U.S. each year. Other Vanderbilt experts also popped up in the news discussing how to handle long allergy seasons, new discoveries about patients in vegetative states, and even the funny concept of "vaccine beer."

For more details, see vumc at news.vumc.org/2026/04/16/the-importance-of-walking-the-importance-of-talking-the-importance-of-reducing-loneliness-plus-other-stories-with-vanderbilt-health-sources/ (opens in new tab)