Making Healthy Choices

Health Guidelines

Physical Activity: How's the Nation Doing?

Fitness for Life is a 10-week lifestyle change program available for community health outreach.

www.lifelonghealth.us

Increasing overall participation in leisure time physical activity has been one of the Nations top health objectives since the first Healthy People Goals came out in 1980. In the current Healthy People 2010 Goals, physical activity is the first health priority listed for the nation. Physical activity is powerful preventive medicine. In the U.S. Surgeon General's Report on Physical Activity and Health, the surgeon General listed the major health consequences of inactivity:

high blood pressure
coronary heart disease
diabetes
osteoporosis
obesity
colon cancer
breast cancer
depression

In light of this knowledge and after 20 years of promoting fitness, how fit is the nation doing today? To find out how active people are today, the National Center for Health Statistics conducted the National Health Interview Survey. It includes over 68,000 adults (age 18 and older) from a random sampling of the entire U.S. population.

Here is what they found. Overall, 30.6% of the population engage in regular physical activity (light to moderate physical activity or vigorous). That means that nearly 70% do not get any regular physical activity!

Only about 1 in 10 people (11.6%) engage regularly in any vigorous physical activity. Thus about 90% of the population get no regular, vigorous activity.

As people age, activity levels decrease. Young adults are twice as active as older adults even though activity is one of the best ways to reverse the negative effects of aging.

People living in the West were the most active. Those living in the South were the least active.

Married women were the most active of all women groups. Those with higher education levels were twice as likely to be active as those with lower education levels.

When asked about strength building exercises, 22.9% of adults reported doing any strength exercises. That means nearly 80% of adults do no activities to improve or maintain strength.

These data show the great need still remaining for improvement in fitness in the U.S. Regular physical activity is one of the best strategies for combating the health risks associated with obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, heart disease, depression, and even certain cancers. Consider what you can do to improve the fitness level of your family, business, church, or community.

Reference: CDC, Advance Data from Vital and Health Statistics, No. 325, April 7, 2002

Resources
LifeLong Health, Fitness For Life Training Seminar
Surgeon General's Report, Physical Activity and Health
CDC, Physical Activity. Ready. Set. It's everywhere you go!
CDC, List of Nutrition and Fitness Promotion Organizations

Reference

New England Journal of Medicine, "Sounding Board", April 25, 2002
CDC web site on smallpox, accessed May 1, 2002 (see link above)

Making Healthy Choices articles are written by Don Hall, DrPH, CHES president of LifeLong Health with contributions from associated health professionals. Content is general health information from evidence based research. It's purpose is not to treat disease or take the place of advice by your doctor but to promote healthy lifestyles. Persons with health problems should contact their physician for specific guidance.