Be physically active: the best buy in promoting heart health

Abstract

This editorial refers to Low physical activity as a predictor for total and cardiovascular disease mortality in middle-aged men and in Finland by N.C. Barengo et al. on page 2204 and Joint effects of physical activity, body mass index, waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio with the risk of cardiovascular disease among middle-aged Finnish men and women by G. Hu et al. on page 2212. † It is now more than 50 years ago that the physical activity-coronary heart disease (CHD) hypothesis was launched by Morris et al.1 with his pioneer work on London bus drivers. Since then, physical inactivity has been documented as a well-established risk factor for CHD in Western populations; a sedentary lifestyle is associated with about a two-fold increase in risk of CHD. With increasing rates of urbanization and other major changes in human behaviour, the prevalence of a sedentary lifestyle has further increased particularly among the young; it is estimated that children today expend approximately 600 kcal/day less than their counterparts 50 years ago.2 In the meantime, remaining gaps regarding the physical activity-CHD association – have been filled; … *Correspondence to: Guy G. De Backer, MD, PhD, Department of Public Health, University of Ghent, De Pintelaan, 185, 9000 Gent, Belgium. Tel.: +32 9240 3627; fax: +32 9240 4994 (E-mail: guy.debacker{at}ugent.be).