In a first-ever report, the World Health Organization (WHO) has highlighted the high cost of physical inactivity. The report, released today, revealed that almost 500 million people will develop heart disease, obesity, diabetes or other non-communicable diseases (NCDs) attributable to physical inactivity, between 2020 and 2030.
According to the global health agency, this can cost US$ 27 billion annually, if the governments don’t take urgent action to encourage more physical activity among their populations.
The Global status report on physical activity 2022, published today measures the extent to which governments are implementing recommendations to increase physical activity across all ages and abilities.
Data from 194 countries show that overall, progress is slow and that countries need to accelerate the development and implementation of policies to increase levels of physical activity and thereby prevent disease and reduce the burden on already overwhelmed healthcare systems.
WHO found that less than 50 percent of countries have a national physical activity policy, of which less than 40 percent are operational, only 30 percent of countries have national physical activity guidelines for all age groups, while nearly all countries report a system for monitoring physical activity in adults, 75 percent of countries monitor physical activity among adolescents, and less than 30 percent monitor physical activity in children under 5 years.
The health agency also found that in policy areas that could encourage active and sustainable transport, only just over 40 percent of countries have road design standards that make walking and cycling safer.
“We need more countries to scale up implementation of policies to support people to be more active through walking, cycling, sport, and other physical activity. The benefits are huge, not only for the physical and mental health of individuals, but also for societies, environments, and economies. We hope countries and partners will use this report to build more active, healthier, and fairer societies for all…” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General in a statement.
Meanwhile, the economic burden of physical inactivity is significant and the cost of treating new cases of preventable non-communicable diseases (NCDs) will reach nearly US$ 300 billion by 2030, around US$ 27 billion annually.
Whilst national policies to tackle NCDs and physical inactivity have increased in recent years, currently 28 percent of policies are reported to be not funded or implemented.
The report showed that only just over 50 percent of countries ran a national communications campaign, or organised mass participation physical activity events in the last two years. The COVID-19 pandemic has not only stalled these initiatives, but also affected other policy implementations which has widened inequities in access to and, opportunities for, engaging in physical activity for many communities.
To help countries increase physical activity, WHO’s Global action plan on physical activity 2018-2030 (GAPPA) sets out 20 policy recommendations.
“We are missing globally approved indicators to measure access to parks, cycle lanes, foot paths – even though we know that data do exist in some countries. Consequently, we cannot report or track the global provision of infrastructure that will facilitate increases in physical activity. It can be a vicious circle, no indicator and no data leads to no tracking and no accountability, and then too often, to no policy and no investment. What gets measured gets done, and we have some way to go to comprehensively and robustly track national actions on physical activity, “said Fiona Bull, Head of the WHO Physical Activity Unit in a statement.
Moreover, the report calls for countries to prioritise physical activity as key to improving health and tackling NCDs, integrate physical activity into all relevant policies, and develop tools, guidance, and training to improve implementation.
