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What is the
shape of the new European?
Almost 300 health
professionals from all over Europe are travelling to Belfast
for a conference on Health Enhancing Physical Activity and
Active Living for You and Your Community at the Waterfront
Hall, which commences on Sunday 22 October.
Northern Ireland
has been chosen as host for this unique international event.
Delegates from Israel to Iceland and other far off destinations
will be attending the three day event, which aims to make
physical activity a top priority on the public health agenda.
Research conducted
by the British Heart Foundation shows how the United Kingdom
measures up to the rest of Europe in terms of physical activity.
In the UK more than one in five adults takes no physical activity
at all in a typical week compared with one in ten adults in
Finland. In fact in Northern Ireland seven out of ten men
and eight out of ten women do not take enough physical activity
to benefit their health.
Charlie Foster,
Researcher for the British Heart Foundation, presenting at
the conference said: "The
prevalence and impact of physical inactivity is emerging as
one of the largest public health problems throughout Europe.
Increasingly the cost of treating chronic diseases and conditions
will grow as health problems such as cardiovascular disease,
diabetes and obesity continue to develop."
In Northern Ireland
more than one in three adults is overweight and almost one
in five is obese. In fact research shows that obesity is a
major cause for concern across the UK as well as in Ireland
and Germany. These countries all presently sit at the top
of the World Health Organization obesity scale.
The statistics
compare badly with other countries in Europe, where the percentage
of the population being overweight is much less, for instance,
in Norway only one in twenty people would fall into this category.
Mr Foster continued:
"The health, social and economic costs of a less active population
across all ages are likely to rise as changes in occupation,
transport, leisure time and the environment encourage the
majority of the population to remain sedentary."
This view is
supported by the figures revealed earlier this year showing
that if the sedentary population in Northern Ireland was reduced
by 5% the number of deaths related to an inactive lifestyle
would be reduced by 365 per year - one death a day.
All these figures
emphasise that physical activity is a vital part of maintaining
and improving health and could help reduce the burden on the
health service. Keeping active can bring many benefits, such
as reducing the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure,
osteoporosis and stress as well as helping to control body
weight and is an investment for a healthy independent future.
The conference
has been organised by the Health Promotion Agency for Northern
Ireland, Belfast City Council, the Eastern Health and Social
Services Board and Belfast Healthy Cities.
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