What is the shape of the new European?

Almost 300 health professionals from all over Europe are travelling to Belfast for a conference on Health Enhancing Physical Activity and Active Living for You and Your Community at the Waterfront Hall, which commences on Sunday 22 October.

Northern Ireland has been chosen as host for this unique international event. Delegates from Israel to Iceland and other far off destinations will be attending the three day event, which aims to make physical activity a top priority on the public health agenda.

Research conducted by the British Heart Foundation shows how the United Kingdom measures up to the rest of Europe in terms of physical activity. In the UK more than one in five adults takes no physical activity at all in a typical week compared with one in ten adults in Finland. In fact in Northern Ireland seven out of ten men and eight out of ten women do not take enough physical activity to benefit their health.

Charlie Foster, Researcher for the British Heart Foundation, presenting at the conference said: "The prevalence and impact of physical inactivity is emerging as one of the largest public health problems throughout Europe. Increasingly the cost of treating chronic diseases and conditions will grow as health problems such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity continue to develop."

In Northern Ireland more than one in three adults is overweight and almost one in five is obese. In fact research shows that obesity is a major cause for concern across the UK as well as in Ireland and Germany. These countries all presently sit at the top of the World Health Organization obesity scale.

The statistics compare badly with other countries in Europe, where the percentage of the population being overweight is much less, for instance, in Norway only one in twenty people would fall into this category.

Mr Foster continued: "The health, social and economic costs of a less active population across all ages are likely to rise as changes in occupation, transport, leisure time and the environment encourage the majority of the population to remain sedentary."

This view is supported by the figures revealed earlier this year showing that if the sedentary population in Northern Ireland was reduced by 5% the number of deaths related to an inactive lifestyle would be reduced by 365 per year - one death a day.

All these figures emphasise that physical activity is a vital part of maintaining and improving health and could help reduce the burden on the health service. Keeping active can bring many benefits, such as reducing the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, osteoporosis and stress as well as helping to control body weight and is an investment for a healthy independent future.

The conference has been organised by the Health Promotion Agency for Northern Ireland, Belfast City Council, the Eastern Health and Social Services Board and Belfast Healthy Cities.

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