Importance of Physical Activity/chapter-3

Importance of Physical Activity

Physical activity provides long-term health benefits for everyone! By being active, you will burn calories that you store from eating throughout the day and—it can be as easy as walking the dog or as rigorous as running a marathon. Providing opportunities for children to be active early on puts them on a path to better physical and mental health. It's never too late to jumpstart a healthy lifestyle.

Physical Activity & Obesity

Physical activity, along with proper nutrition, is beneficial to people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities. And it is important that everyone gets active: over the last 20 years, there's been a significant increase in obesity in the United States. About one-third of U.S. adults (33.8%) are obese and approximately 17% (or 12.5 million) of children and adolescents (aged 2-19 years) are obese.¹

The health implications of obesity in America are startling:

·         If things remain as they are today, one-third of all children born in the year 2000 or later may suffer from diabetes at some point in their lives, while many others are likely to face chronic health problems such as heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer, diabetes, and asthma.²

·         Studies indicate that overweight youth may never achieve a healthy weight, and up to 70% of obese teens may become obese adults.³

·         Even more worrisome, the cumulative effect could be that children born in the year 2000 or later may not outlive their parents. ⁴

The impact of obesity doesn't end there. Obesity has personal financial and national economic implications as well. Those who are obese have medical costs that are $1,429 more than those of normal weight on average (roughly 42% higher).⁵ And annual direct costs of childhood obesity are $14.3 billion.⁶

By incorporating physical activity into your daily life—30 minutes for adults and 60 minutes for children—as well as healthy eating, you will experience positive health benefits and be on the path for a better future.

The Impact of Physical Activity on Your Health

Regular physical activity can produce long-term health benefits. It can help:

·         Prevent chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and stroke (the three leading health-related causes of death)

·         Control weight

·         Make your muscles stronger

·         Reduce fat

·         Promote strong bone, muscle, and joint development

·         Condition heart and lungs

·         Build overall strength and endurance

·         Improve sleep

·         Decrease potential of becoming depressed

·         Increase your energy and self-esteem

·         Relieve stress

·         Increase your chances of living longer

When you are not physically active, you are more at risk for:

·         High blood pressure

·         High blood cholesterol

·         Stroke

·         Type 2 diabetes

·         Heart disease

·         Cancer

physical activity

Physical activity or exercise can improve your health and reduce the risk of developing several diseases like type 2 diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease. Physical activity and exercise can have immediate and long-term health benefits. Most importantly, regular activity can improve your quality of life. A minimum of 30 minutes a day can allow you to enjoy these benefits.  

Benefits of regular physical activity

If you are regularly physically active, you may:

·         reduce your risk of a heart attack 

·         manage your weight better 

·         have a lower blood cholesterol level 

·         lower the risk of type 2 diabetes and some cancers 

·         have lower blood pressure 

·         have stronger bones, muscles and joints and lower risk of developing osteoporosis 

·         lower your risk of falls 

·         recover better from periods of hospitalisation or bed rest 

·         feel better – with more energy, a better mood, feel more relaxed and sleep better

A healthier state of mind 

A number of studies have found that exercise helps depression. There are many views as to how exercise helps people with depression:

·         Exercise may block negative thoughts or distract you from daily worries. 

·         Exercising with others provides an opportunity for increased social contact. 

·         Increased fitness may lift your mood and improve your sleep patterns. 

·         Exercise may also change levels of chemicals in your brain, such as serotonin, endorphins and stress hormones.  

Aim for at least 30 minutes a day 

To maintain health and reduce your risk of health problems, health professionals and researchers recommend a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity on most, preferably all, days. 

Physical activity guideline

It states that:

·         Doing any physical activity is better than doing none. If you currently do no physical activity, start by doing some, and gradually build up to the recommended amount.

·         Be active on most, preferably all, days every week. 

·         Accumulate 150 to 300 minutes (2 ½ to 5 hours) of moderate intensity physical activity or 75 to 150 minutes (1 ¼ to 2 ½ hours) of vigorous intensity physical activity, or an equivalent combination of both moderate and vigorous activities, each week. 

·         Do muscle strengthening activities on at least two days each week.

Ways to increase physical activity

Increases in daily activity can come from small changes made throughout your day, such as walking or cycling instead of using the car, getting off a tram, train or bus a stop earlier and walking the rest of the way, or walking the children to school.  

See your doctor first

It is a good idea to see your doctor before starting your physical activity program if:

·         you are aged over 45 years 

·         physical activity causes pain in your chest 

·         you often faint or have spells of severe dizziness 

·         moderate physical activity makes you very breathless 

·         you are at a higher risk of heart disease 

·         you think you might have heart disease or you have heart problems 

·         you are pregnant. 

Pre-exercise screening is used to identify people with medical conditions that may put them at a higher risk of experiencing a health problem during physical activity. It is a filter or ‘safety net’ to help decide if the potential benefits of exercise outweigh the risks for you.