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Dr Health
Exercising is an excellent way to boost health and prevent disease but staying active throughout the day is even more important. Sitting at the computer or spending too much time watching TV can be actively harmful to your health, researches say. The study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, followed more than 3 900 men and women over 12,5 years.

They found an active life, even without regular exercise, to be linked to smaller waists and healthier hearts.
Participants in the study who had reported high levels of non-exercise activity were less likely to suffer a heart attack and die than those who were inactive.

“Engaging in regular exercise is still important,” lead author Elin Ekblom-Bak, of the Åstrand Laboratory of Work Physiology at the Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences in Stockholm, told Reuters.

“We saw that those who exercised regularly and that also had a daily physically active life had the lowest risk profile of all.”

Recent reports from the National Cancer Institute show that fewer than 5 percent of adults get at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise per day. According to the World Health Organisation’s website, “physical inactivity is estimated to be the main cause for approximately 21 to 25 percent of breast and colon cancers, 27 per- cent of diabetes and approximately 30 percent of ischaemic heart disease burden.

“The term ‘physical activity’ should not be mistaken with ‘exercise’.

Exercise, is a subcategory of physical activity that is planned, structured, repetitive . . . Physical activity includes exercise as well as other activities which involve bodily movement and are done as part of playing, working, active transportation, house chores and recreational activities.”

Physical inactivity directly equates to 6 per- cent of annual deaths and that is statistically equivalent to the deaths caused by diabetes and nearly the amount of deaths associated with tobacco use. Escalating statistics highlight physical inactivity as the fourth leading risk factor for premature death.

“The link between physical inactivity and disease is profound,” said Mr Try Chadyiwa, director-deneral of the Heart Foundation of Zimbabwe, “escalating levels of sitting and non-exercise behaviours are leading to the development of high blood pressure — a leading risk factor in heart attack and stroke.

“Even more alarming, we are seeing high levels of physical inactivity in our youth and adolescents — an important indicator in weight gain, the development of type 2 diabetes and premature cardiovascular diseases.

“Becoming more active can lower your blood pressure by as much as 4 to 9mm Hg.

“That’s the same reduction in blood pressure delivered by some blood pressure medications. Physical activity can also increase levels of good cholesterol.

“Trends indicate that the public believes physical activity and exercise is only needed when trying to lose weight. Healthy weight individuals justify physical inactivity because of perceived good-health status,” Chadyiwa adds.

Physical activity and exercise is needed for all — regardless of weight, health condition or age — to achieve optimal health and fight off disease. For each hour of regular exercise you get, you’ll gain about two hours of additional life expectancy.

• The writer is a doctor and an international health columnist who works in collaboration with the World Health Organisation’s goals of disease prevention and control. Views do not necessarily reflect endorsement.