Get active and get healthy
* Adults 18 and older need 30 minutes of physical
activity on five or more days a week to be healthy; children and teens
need 60 minutes of activity a day for their health.
* Significant health benefits can be obtained by including a moderate
amount of physical activity (e.g., 30 minutes of brisk walking or
raking leaves, 15 minutes of running, 45 minutes of playing
volleyball). Additional health benefits can be gained through greater
amounts of physical activity.
* Thirty to sixty minutes of activity broken into smaller segments of
10 or 15 minutes throughout the day has significant health benefits.
Moderate daily physical activity can reduce substantially the risk of
developing or dying from cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and
certain cancers, such as colon cancer. Daily physical activity helps to
lower blood pressure and cholesterol, helps prevent or retard
osteoporosis, and helps reduce obesity, symptoms of anxiety and
depression, and symptoms of arthritis.
* Heart disease is the leading cause of death among men and women in
the United States. Physically inactive people are twice as likely to
develop coronary heart disease as regularly active people.
* 37% of adults report they are not physically active. Only 3 in 10 adults get the recommended amount of physical activity.
* Poor diet and inactivity can lead to overweight/obesity. Persons who
are overweight or obese are at increased risk for high blood pressure,
type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, gallbladder disease,
osteoarthritis, sleep apnea, respiratory problems and some types of
cancer.