Health and Economic Burdens of Physical Inactivity: Implication for Healthy Lifestyle Promotion

Physical inactivity is increasingly becoming a global health challenge with lots of implications for individual, family and community health. This paper focused on the Health and Economic Burdens of Physical inactivity and its Implication for Healthy Lifestyle Promotion. The topic was discussed under 4 major headings namely concept description, health and economic burdens of inactivity, and implication for healthy lifestyle promotion. Regarding concept description inactivity was conceived as a state of not moving the body enough to meet the guideline of World Health Organization (WHO) for physical activity. Physical activity on the hand was defined as any movement of the body that causes the muscles to work and demand more energy than that is needed for rest. The major health burdens of physical inactivity as identified in the paper were, increased risk for death, cardiovascular diseases (CVD), bone diseases, cancer and obesity. The paper observed that the economic burden of inactivity arises from the high financial expenditure usually incurred in treating diseases associated with inactivity. It was also revealed that most non-communicable diseases (NCDs) associated with inactivity often results in hospitalization and incapacitation and thus promotes lack of productivity, lose of income and financial dependency. Sequel to the sever burdens of inactivity, the paper identified physical activity as an important lifestyle which is needed to reduce the burdens of inactivity in the world. Places where physical activity could be promoted as discussed in the paper were schools, homes, workplace and community. Physical education, media campaigns, provision of enabling environment and government policies were some of the strategies that were identified as needed for effective promotion of physical activity among the general population. It was therefore recommended among others that health educators should focus on awareness programmes for the promotion of physical activity.