Let's Get Physical

The evidence for the beneficial effects of physical activity grows ever more compelling, even as the discrepancy between promise and practice widens. Physical activity as part of daily living is associated with decreased risk for cardiovascular disease, stroke, cognitive decline, depression, diabetes, obesity, and all-cause mortality [1]. Yet the U.S. population grows increasingly sedentary. In a recent analysis of patterns and trends in physical activity, the U.S. Surgeon General reported that 15% of Americans older than 18 years of age engaged in regular vigorous activity, but 60% reported no regular or sustained leisure time activity, and 27% reported no leisure time activity at all [2]. The report cites the most recent Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988-1991), which said that 32% of women 65 to 74 years of age and 54% of women older than 75 years of age engaged in no leisure time physical activity. Comparable figures for men in the same age categories were 18% and 34%.

The prospective study of older women by Gregg and coworkers in this issue provides additional documentation of the benefits of physical activity in lowering the risk for osteoporotic fracture [3]. Almost 1000 nonblack women older than 65 years of age were categorized according to the total energy expended in walking, daily chores, and sport and recreational activity assessed at baseline by using the Harvard Alumnae Questionnaire. During follow-up, which averaged 7.6 years, women who had higher levels of leisure time and sport activity, …