Editor's Choice Main Category: Sports Medicine / Fitness Article Date: 03 Jul 2012 - 8:00 PDT

Current ratings for: Importance Of Exercise In Health Plans Upheld By Supreme Court Decision

Janet Walberg Rankin, Ph.D., ACSM president and an associate dean at Virginia Tech, quoted a US Department of Health and Human Services announcement that physical inactivity will have caused about 7 million premature deaths in the country just in this decade.

Healthy lifestyles, including exercise and physical activity, need to be part of the healthcare equation. Physical activity has been proven to help prevent over 40 chronic conditions and diseases, including diabetes, stroke and heart disease.

Past president of ACSM, Robert Sallis, M.D., FACSM, stressed that having exercise in the health care equation is sound science, and an economic necessity.

Sallis also chairs the Exercise is Medicine global health care initiative that strives to make physical activity and exercise a part in helping prevent disease and treat medical conditions. One of their main goals is to show people that exercise is indeed medicine. The initiative hopes to make physical activity a concern in all health care visits, while leading to policy changes in both public and private settings for physical activity counseling and referrals in clinical settings.

According to the ACSM, 75% of America's healthcare spending goes on treating chronic diseases. Getting patients general physically active does not only help improve treatment outcomes, but can also be a powerful preventive weapon.

Sallis said:

Walberg Rankin and Sallis claim that people of all ages and health status who can become physically active and are able to exercise, are going to gain and maintain better wellness. They believe this should be a main concern in any debate on health policy.

Business already know about this, they added - local and national governments around the world are starting to become aware that there is an enormous impact on the bottom line if people are kept healthy. Between $233 and $381 billion are spent dealing with preventable diseases which would not now be affecting people if they were physically active.

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Importance Of Exercise In Health Plans Upheld By Supreme Court Decision