Walking was specifically found to be inversely related to hip fractures. The more walking women did each week — even at relatively slow speeds — the lower their risk of breaking a hip.

Older women who keep physically active — even if that activity involves taking relatively slow daily walks — are less likely to fall and fracture a hip, according to a study published in the journal JAMA Network Open.

This isn’t the first study to link regular physical activity and a lower risk of hip fractures in older adults, but it is one of the biggest, according to its authors.

The topic is an important one. Currently, more than 300,000 Americans aged 65 and older are hospitalized with a hip fracture each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Three-quarters of those fractures occur among women, and almost all (95 percent) are the result of falls.

Those numbers are expected to grow significantly in the coming years as the large baby boomer generation continues to age.

Hip fractures can be very serious, for they raise the risk of medical complications such as blood clots, infections and pneumonia. One in five older adults who break a hip die within a year of the injury. Hip fractures can also greatly affect quality of life, making it impossible for people to regain their previous levels of physical functioning.

Walking was specifically found to be inversely related to hip fractures. The more walking women did each week — even at relatively slow speeds — the lower their risk of breaking a hip.

The women who exercised the most were also less likely to experience a vertebral fracture.

The analysis did reveal, however, that women who engaged in vigorous physical activity (defined as jogging, tennis, and other aerobics dancing) were at a slightly greater risk for wrist and forearm fractures, and the women who exercised the most overall were also at an increased risk of knee and elbow fractures.

As we get older, we naturally do less-strenuous physical activity. This suggests that to lower your risk of hip fracture, you don’t need to do anything fancy. It can be as simple as walking.”