It is important to note that physical activity plays one of the key roles in maintaining a high level of health metrics. With the rise of metabolic diseases becoming the direct causes of the largest number of deaths and impairments across the planet, exercise’s value cannot be overlooked. Professional philosophy: Physical activity must not be imposed on people as mere recommendations and guidelines, but rather, the environment needs to be created where populations naturally engage in it.
In order to understand why a more serious approach to physical activity needs to be undertaken across professional domains related to public health, it is critical to revisit its inherent value. It is established that “people who are physically active generally live longer and have a lower risk for heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, depression, some cancers, and obesity” (CDC, 2014, p. 3). For children and adolescents, physical activity enables “improved cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness, bone health, cardiovascular and metabolic health biomarkers, and favorable body composition” (CDC, 2011, p. 3). In other words, there are too many benefits and positive health effects to ignore it or use it as a mere recommendation. Proactive steps need to be undertaken in a professional manner to actively encourage and facilitate physical activity levels among populations.
The future direction among health professionals must be a major shift towards preventative healthcare, of which physical activity is a big part, considering its massive impact on well-being. Policymakers, healthcare officials, and health professionals can take effective steps toward the facilitation of physical activity among people, which go beyond merely written reports, guidelines, and recommendations. It is stated that “state health departments can work with governmental and nongovernmental partners to create safe places for physical activity, to enhance physical education and physical activity in schools and child care settings” (CDC, 2014, p. 3). However, such efforts are not limited to children and school students only since it is possible to implement “environmental and policy strategies in place that encourage physical activity … to support street-scale and community-scale design policy” (CDC, 2014, p. 3). In other words, proactive measures can be undertaken to create infrastructure and communal environments where engaging in physical activity is easy, accessible, and beneficial.
One cannot simply expect to observe a rise in physical activity levels in the population if a member of the community has no sidewalks to walk on or no parks to ride through recreationally. Professionals in the field must step up their efforts by engaging in advocacy and awareness raising in order to create a political and social movement towards increased physical activity. People should not be positioned as the only bearer of responsibility for the lack of physical activity. There are laws on seatbelts to prevent dire consequences in case of car crashes, and there are bans on smoking in undesignated areas. A similar approach must be used to prevent public health harm from the lack of physical activity by creating policies and regulations forcing municipalities to build parks, facilities, and sidewalks.
In conclusion, physical activity must be facilitated by creating an environment where populations naturally engage in it instead of imposing it on people as mere recommendations and guidelines. Proactive steps need to be undertaken in a professional manner to actively encourage and facilitate physical activity levels among populations since there are too many benefits and positive health effects to ignore. The future direction among health professionals must be a major shift towards preventative healthcare, and policymakers, healthcare officials, and health professionals can take effective steps toward the facilitation of physical activity among people.
References
CDC. (2011). Strategies to prevent obesity and other chronic diseases: The CDC guide to strategies to increase physical activity in the community [PDF document]. Web.
CDC. 2014 State indicator report on physical activity [PDF document]. Web.