There is no doubt that living in the COVID-19 pandemic has placed health at the forefront of peoples minds. Despite this many people are more fearful of the economical impact of COVID-19 than their own health. This begs the question do people know what's at stake if you don't invest in your health?
HEALTH CONDITIONS
Worryingly in England alone 25% of the population over the age of 16 is categorised as physically inactive. That is exercising for less than 30 minutes a week. Physical inactivity not only costs the UK £7.4 billion annually but is responsible for one in six deaths. Globally physical inactivity is the 4th leading risk factor for death, accounting for 6% of all deaths.
If you're not active enough for good health then you're potentially placing yourself at an increased risk for many chronic health conditions.
Being inactive will mean that your body will be doing less. What this means is your body will be burning fewer calories which increases the likelihood of weight gain. If you're inactive muscles aren't being used as much which can see a reduction in strength and endurance. Bones can become weaker and bone mineral density could decrease increasing the chances of fractures. Physical inactivity also affects blood circulation, hormone balance and immune system in a negative way.
What people don't tend to realise is regular physical activity can reduce the risk of over twenty chronic medical conditions including;
Dementia by 30%
Depression 30%
Cardiovascular Disease by 35%
Colon Cancer by 30%
Breast Cancer by 20%
Type 2 Diabetes by 40%
The modern generation is in a physical activity and health crisis. It is predicted that physical activity levels will continue to drop meaning people who are physically inactive will increase to 35% by 2030.
COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic took the world by surprise. The rapid spread of the virus forced counties to go into total lockdown and changing our lives dramatically over the past twelve months or so.
COVID-19 has now reached around 128,000 deaths in the UK alone. Of which older people and those with underlying health conditions have been found to develop more serious illness from the disease. Meeting the activity guidelines helps reduce the risk for severe COVID-19 outcomes.
INJURY AND SICKNESS
In a study with involving children in school, physical inactivity was identified as a risk factor for increased injuries.
If you're inactive for prolonged periods of time, it can lead to increased back pain as it becomes stiff, weaker and de-conditioned from a lack of activity. This can create a vicious circle as with increased pain more people are likely to further reduce their physical activity.
Individuals who are classed as sedentary suffer from more days absent at work than those who are more active.
In the UK 38 million days were lost in the workplace due to ill health. Thats a significant amount of time and money lost for both the employee and the employers.
TAKE HOME MESSAGE
The way the worlds going the health crisis will continue to grow. Physical inactivity is continuously on the rise and as a result can reduce your life expectancy by putting yourself at an increased risk for many chronic health conditions.
Not only that but as global pandemic scares are also more common, you're at an increased risk of suffering worse from these diseases due to underlying ill health.
Not investing in your health can also impact your immune system and increase the risk of aches and pains which can increase amount of absences seen at work.
All of these things can impact how well you can live your life. If you can't live life to the full due to ill health then should investing in your health become a priority?
Lets try and improve our lives today by increasing physical activity levels and reduce many risk factors associated with health complications.
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