A new study published in medical journal The Lancet has claimed that
sedentary lifestyles and a lack of physical exercise are responsible for 5.3
million deaths – just as many as smoking – throughout the world.
Among the conclusions of the report is that the problem has become so
widespread that it should be treated as a pandemic, with physical inactivity
said to be the “fourth leading cause of death worldwide”.
The report states: “Although evidence for the benefits of physical activity
for health has been available since the 1950s, promotion to improve the health
of populations has lagged in relation to the available evidence.
“Promotion of exercise has only recently developed an identifiable
infrastructure, including efforts in planning, policy, leadership and advocacy,
workforce training and development, and monitoring and surveillance.
“The reasons for this late start are myriad, multi-factorial and complex.
This infrastructure should continue to be formed, intersectoral approaches are
essential to advance, and advocacy remains a key pillar.
“Although there is a need to build global capacity based on the present
foundations, a systems approach that focuses on populations and the complex
interactions among the correlates of physical inactivity, rather than solely a
behavioural science approach focusing on individuals, is the way forward to
increase physical activity worldwide.”
The publication of The Lancet report is timed to coincide with final
preparations for the 2012 Olympic Games, with Lord Krebs, chair of the House of
Lords’ Science and Technology Select Committee (STSC), criticising the legacy
plans of the Games.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4′s Today programme, Krebs said the government
had no credible plan to produce a health legacy from the Olympics and described
sport minister Hugh Robertson as being “disinterested” in the issue.
He added that the STSC’s report on sport and exercise science – published on
the same day as The Lancet report (click here to read more) – revealed that none of
the 48 London GP practices surveyed were aware of the latest Physical Activity
Guidelines.
Click here for the full report from The
Lancet.
sedentary lifestyles and a lack of physical exercise are responsible for 5.3
million deaths – just as many as smoking – throughout the world.
Among the conclusions of the report is that the problem has become so
widespread that it should be treated as a pandemic, with physical inactivity
said to be the “fourth leading cause of death worldwide”.
The report states: “Although evidence for the benefits of physical activity
for health has been available since the 1950s, promotion to improve the health
of populations has lagged in relation to the available evidence.
“Promotion of exercise has only recently developed an identifiable
infrastructure, including efforts in planning, policy, leadership and advocacy,
workforce training and development, and monitoring and surveillance.
“The reasons for this late start are myriad, multi-factorial and complex.
This infrastructure should continue to be formed, intersectoral approaches are
essential to advance, and advocacy remains a key pillar.
“Although there is a need to build global capacity based on the present
foundations, a systems approach that focuses on populations and the complex
interactions among the correlates of physical inactivity, rather than solely a
behavioural science approach focusing on individuals, is the way forward to
increase physical activity worldwide.”
The publication of The Lancet report is timed to coincide with final
preparations for the 2012 Olympic Games, with Lord Krebs, chair of the House of
Lords’ Science and Technology Select Committee (STSC), criticising the legacy
plans of the Games.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4′s Today programme, Krebs said the government
had no credible plan to produce a health legacy from the Olympics and described
sport minister Hugh Robertson as being “disinterested” in the issue.
He added that the STSC’s report on sport and exercise science – published on
the same day as The Lancet report (click here to read more) – revealed that none of
the 48 London GP practices surveyed were aware of the latest Physical Activity
Guidelines.
Click here for the full report from The
Lancet.
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