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By the time they reach middle age, many women put on weight and it seems impossible to get rid of it.

However, Brazilian researchers claim that just by making sure you walk 6,000 steps a day, you can not only lose weight, but also reduce your risk of encountering conditions associated with menopause - like diabetes and metabolic syndrome.  

For the study, researchers observed and analyzed 292 women in Passo Fundo, Brazil, aged between 45 and 72. The daily number of steps walked by the women was recorded by the experimenters and they were also checked for their cholesterol and blood sugar levels, apart from regular measurements of their waist and hip. Abdominal obesity is an indicator of diabetes and cardiovascular disease risk, Mail Online reported.

The findings of the study revealed that women who walked 6,000 or more steps a day were significantly less obese than those who walked lesser.

Also, they were found to be less likely to have metabolic syndrome or diabetes, irrespective of them having attained menopause (when risks of contracting these diseases are high).

"For midlife women, it looks like the journey to health begins with 6,000 steps," the report said.

The study is published in Menopause, the journal of the North American Menopause Society.

Studies have shown previously that usage of pedometers (which measures steps) could reduce people's chances of contracting diabetes by half.

Many studies have shown previously that walking has many health benefits.

Researchers from Boston Medical Centre have found that people in their middle age, who have a poor grip or who walk slowly, may be one and a half times more likely to be at risk of dementia or stroke after the age of 65, compared to those who could walk faster.