Exercise and sporting activity could prevent at least 10,000 premature deaths, but one in three people in the European Union do not do enough of it and 45 percent of citizens do not do it at all, according to Eurobarometer.
The data emerges from the WHO and OECD report ‘Step up! Tackling the burden of insufficient physical activity in Europe‘, ‘Bring it on! Addressing the burden of insufficient physical activity in Europe‘. (1)
Life-saving exercise
Lack of exercise in the European population is contributing to millions of cases ofNon-Communicable Diseases (NCDs). A detriment to people’s health and well-being, but also a ballast for national economies.
The WHO-OECD report focuses on the issue, explaining how increasing physical activity to recommended levels could prevent thousands of premature deaths in the EU and save billions of euros in health care spending.
Saving 10,000 lives a year
‘Regular physical activity is one of the most important things people can do for a healthy life. Not only does it significantly reduce the risk of numerous noncommunicable diseases, it also improves mental health and increases well-being’, explains Dr. Kremlin Wickramasinghe, acting head of WHO’s European Office for Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Control.
‘WHO recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week, and every movement counts toward better health. Our latest report shows that if everyone in the EU were to meet WHO-recommended levels of physical activity, more than 10,000 premature deaths could be prevented each year‘.
The new report produced in collaboration with the OECD and with EU funding shows the potential impact that increasing physical activity levels would have on the health of the population and the EU economy.
300 minutes per week
According to the publication, increasing physical activity to the minimum recommended levels in the EU would prevent 11.5 million new cases of noncommunicable diseases by 2050, including
- 3.8 million cases of cardiovascular disease,
- 3.5 million cases of depression,
- Nearly 1 million cases of type 2 diabetes and
- More than 400,000 different cancer cases.
Achieving the goal of 300 minutes of physical activity per week would prevent an additional 16 million cases of noncommunicable diseases.
The case of Germany, Italy and France
The potential economic benefits generated by increased physical activity in the population are important.
In the EU, Germany, Italy and France experience the heaviest burden on health care spending due to the sedentary nature of the population.
The WHO/OECD report estimates that to treat sedentary-related diseases, these three countries will spend an average of 2 billion, 1.3 billion, and 1 billion euros, respectively, for each year from 2022 to 2050.
The economic benefits
‘Our modeling study clearly shows that increasing physical activity levels is not only great for health, but will create a positive effect for any country’s economy, returning 1.7 euros of economic benefit for every euro invested.’, says Michele Cecchini, who heads the OECD’s Public Health Program Group.
Overall, if EU member countries decide to address physical inactivity in the entire population, they could save an average of 0.6 percent of their health budgets. That’s nearly 8 billion euros a year, more than the total annual health spending of Lithuania and Luxembourg combined, according to the WHO-OECD report.
Yet another harm of the pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has also had a negative impact on exercise. The restrictions prevented people from attending gyms, swimming pools and sports centers, limiting physical activity to 200 meters from home, as you may recall.
As a result, more than half of the respondents in the latest Eurobarometer survey said they have reduced their level of physical activity, with 34 percent exercising less frequently and 18 percent stopping completely.
Policies to reverse the trend
Policy measures to reverse this trend are still little practiced by national governments. (2) The report indicates that interventions aimed at increasing mobility in travel to school or work are active in only 14 and 17 of the 27 EU member states, respectively.
There is, however, a wide range of policy options for increasing the population’s physical activity levels, such as
- specific programs in schools, workplaces and the health care system,
- Policies to increase access to sports facilities,
- urban planning, environment and transportation policies,
- communication and information campaigns.
The list should be adopted in full. ‘Because physical activity is a complex behavior, a comprehensive policy package is needed to target all its factors simultaneously, with sufficient and sustained funding and robust evaluation,’ warn the report’s authors.
After all, campaigning on TV to urge increased exercise without providing economic incentives-a subsidy for young people from low-income families, for example-remains pure propaganda theory.
Notes
(1) WHO European Region, OECD. ‘Step up! ‘Tackling the burden of insufficient physical activity in Europe’. https://doi.org/10.1787/500a9601-it
(2) Marta Strinati. Physical activity extends life, but governments are still standing still. UN Report. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 2.11.22
Professional journalist since January 1995, he has worked for newspapers (Il Messaggero, Paese Sera, La Stampa) and periodicals (NumeroUno, Il Salvagente). She is the author of journalistic surveys on food, she has published the book "Reading labels to know what we eat".
