kellierocks
Silver Member
Runners world had this article on whether we should focus on increasing exercise rather than on reducing obesity- from my point of view, I love this idea. WHat do theres think? read below.....
a short summary of the YES and NO positions.
YES
*** Exercise alone produces better health outcomes than any drug or medical treatment ever invented. Even if weight doesn't change.
*** Only 5 percent of British and American citizens are meeting the exercise recommendations. There's a lot of room for improvement. "Physical inactivity is the only risk factor for chronic disease that has an adult population prevalence of 95 percent." Vs 67 percent or so for overweight and obesity.
*** Fitness is a better predictor of mortality and illness prevalence than fatness. Many "fat but fit" exercisers have health profiles as good as their fit but thinner colleagues.
*** If everyone achieved a moderate level of physical activity (exercise) mortality rates would fall 17 percent. If obesity were wiped out, mortality rates would fall 2-3 percent.
NO
*** "A strategy that targets physical inactivity but ignores the problem of obesity is unlikely to bring overall improvements in health." (No data cited.)
*** More exercise will have little impact on obesity, and taking our eyes off the obesity problem will result in poor treatment of societal segments that need the most help dealing with obesity.
*** If we focus on exercise, "it might reinforce the pervasive negative view that obesity cannot be prevented or managed."
*** Exercise proponents have had as bad a success rate as weight-loss proponents.
So, those are the basics of the debate. While I'm sure we all agree that the best approach combines smart eating with smart exercising, I like the way the British Medical Journal forced the groups into two competing corners. Sometimes this increases the clarity of the discussion.
a short summary of the YES and NO positions.
YES
*** Exercise alone produces better health outcomes than any drug or medical treatment ever invented. Even if weight doesn't change.
*** Only 5 percent of British and American citizens are meeting the exercise recommendations. There's a lot of room for improvement. "Physical inactivity is the only risk factor for chronic disease that has an adult population prevalence of 95 percent." Vs 67 percent or so for overweight and obesity.
*** Fitness is a better predictor of mortality and illness prevalence than fatness. Many "fat but fit" exercisers have health profiles as good as their fit but thinner colleagues.
*** If everyone achieved a moderate level of physical activity (exercise) mortality rates would fall 17 percent. If obesity were wiped out, mortality rates would fall 2-3 percent.
NO
*** "A strategy that targets physical inactivity but ignores the problem of obesity is unlikely to bring overall improvements in health." (No data cited.)
*** More exercise will have little impact on obesity, and taking our eyes off the obesity problem will result in poor treatment of societal segments that need the most help dealing with obesity.
*** If we focus on exercise, "it might reinforce the pervasive negative view that obesity cannot be prevented or managed."
*** Exercise proponents have had as bad a success rate as weight-loss proponents.
So, those are the basics of the debate. While I'm sure we all agree that the best approach combines smart eating with smart exercising, I like the way the British Medical Journal forced the groups into two competing corners. Sometimes this increases the clarity of the discussion.