Health - Well-being. Is tennis the best sport for your health?

In the summer of 2024, in the heat of New York, the US Open Grand Slam tournament displayed a slogan next to the net, extolling the benefits of tennis. "The healthiest sport for your health," the campaign proclaimed.

But is it true that tennis is healthier than soccer or cycling? This is according to the results of a study published in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings in 2018.

After analyzing data from 8,577 participants over a 25-year period, the researchers concluded that tennis would increase longevity by 9.7 years, compared to 6.2 years for badminton. This was followed by soccer (4.7), cycling (3.7), and swimming (3.4). However, the study has limitations, as the participants studied did not play a single sport, and some sports, such as basketball, were not analyzed.

The risk of cardiovascular mortality decreases

"When you add all the elements together - the hand-eye coordination, the agility, the balance, the aerobic, the anaerobic, the psychological elements and the physiological elements - that's when it becomes really hard to argue against tennis," Jack Groppel, former chairman of the USTA's national sports science committee, told Times Magazine .

Body rotation and repeated strokes work all parts of the body. A 2007 study concluded that a tennis player has "a leaner body, a more favorable lipid profile, better bone health, and a reduced risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality," and that by hitting backhands, forehands, and serves, they improve their "aerobic fitness."

Other research supports this finding. In 2016, a study published in the journal British Journal of Sports Medicine and conducted on more than 80,000 adults, showed that practicing a racket sport (tennis, squash, badminton) would reduce the risk of cardiovascular mortality by 56%.

“It’s the healthiest sport.”

And the benefits of tennis are also visible at the brain level. “This sport requires constant strategic planning, quick decision-making, and adaptability, which stimulate brain function and challenge cognitive abilities,” explains Megan Holmes, a kinesiologist and director of the Physical Activity and Wellness Laboratory at Mississippi State University, to National Geographic .

But giving up soccer for tennis won't instantly add five years to your life expectancy. Because playing sports is one factor among others that contributes to a healthy lifestyle and reduces the risk of mortality. A balanced diet, restful sleep, and low alcohol consumption are just as important. Moreover, a major factor that extends life expectancy isn't exclusive to tennis: social connection.

Social interactions in individual and team sports strengthen the brain's social connectivity and can prevent the risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases. It is "the number one predictor of most health outcomes, including life expectancy," says Dr. James O'Keefe, co-author of the comparative study on life expectancy gains, in the Times Magazine . This is a fact that is found across all sports.

But is tennis the healthiest sport in the world? That's the opinion of Dr. Elan Goldwaser, a sports medicine physician at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. "Yes, the data is convincing enough for me to agree," the expert told TODAY.com . I'm ready to jump on the bandwagon and say this is the healthiest sport we have."