Christopher Berger, PhD, CSCS, discusses some of the pros and cons to getting regular physical activity in his hometown of Pittsburgh, Pa. Berger also talks about an ACSM task force on healthy air travel on which he is involved.
Berger is currently an exercise physiologist with the Health and Physical Activity department at the University of Pittsburgh.
M. “Dot” Fullwood talks about the state of health and fitness in the San Francisco/Bay area, which ranked 8th in the 2010 ACSM American Fitness Index™.
Fullwood, a graduate student at the Health Equity Institute at San Francisco State University, touches on efforts to improve physical activity in the Bay area and the need to change perceptions about physical activity across different socio-economic groups.
Fullwood is active in the Sunday Streets San Francisco program. Sunday Streets offers free and fun physical activity space to all San Franciscans and provides open space in neighborhoods that lack such space currently. Local businesses also benefit from increased pedestrian and bicycle traffic along commercial corridors. The events provide a model of how cities can provide healthy, environmental friendly outdoor activities for their residents. Check out Sunday Streets San Francisco on Facebook and Twitter.
Sarah Pedersen talks about what makes Boston a physically active city in this episode of AFI From the Field. Boston ranked 2nd in the 2010 ACSM American Fitness IndexTM data report.
Sarah also talks about some programs in near Tufts University aimed at improving health and community fitness. Sarah is a PhD student in International Nutrition at Cornell University.
The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and the American Diabetes Association, have issued new exercise guidelines for people with Type-2 diabetes.
The ACSM American Fitness Index™ recognizes the increasing prevalence of Type-2 diabetes as a tremendous threat to the overall health and well-being of communities across the entire United States. For example, one of the data measures for the annual AFI data report is the death rate due to diabetes per 100,000 people. This data point provides an estimate of how the disease impacts a community.
Encouraging individuals with Type-2 diabetes to get the appropriate amount of exercise is key to improving community health.
Read the news release about the new guidelines below.
EXERCISE CAN HELP TAME TYPE 2 DIABETES, SAY NEW GUIDELINES
ACSM, American Diabetes Association guidelines make strong case for physical activity
INDIANAPOLIS – New guidelines on exercise for people with diabetes are likely to open some eyes-and, for those who follow them, help prevent or manage diabetes, improve overall health and boost quality of life. A panel of nine experts developed the recommendations, published this month in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise®, the official journal of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM). ACSM and the American Diabetes Association issued the guidelines as a Joint Position Statement.
While research has solidly established the importance of physical activity to health for all individuals, the new guidelines provide specific advice for those whose diabetes may limit vigorous exercise. The recommendations call for at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-to-vigorous aerobic exercise spread out at least three days during the week, with no more than two consecutive days between bouts of aerobic activity. “Most people with type 2 diabetes do not have sufficient aerobic capacity to undertake sustained vigorous activity for that weekly duration, and they may have orthopedic or other health limitations,” says Sheri R. Colberg, Ph.D., FACSM, who chaired the writing group. Hence, she explains, the group calls for a regimen of moderate-to-vigorous activity and makes no recommendation for a lesser amount of vigorous activity.
Strength training, too
Aerobic activity alone cannot give full benefit of exercise to diabetic individuals, say the experts. Recent research has shown that resistance exercise (strength training) is as important as-and perhaps even more important than-aerobic training in diabetes management. The latest studies, says Colberg, have reinforced the additional benefit of combining aerobic and resistance training for people with diabetes.
No excuses: Physicians should prescribe exercise
According to Colberg, “Many physicians appear unwilling or cautious about prescribing exercise to individuals with type 2 diabetes for a variety of reasons, such as excessive body weight or the presence of health-related complications. However, the majority of people with type 2 diabetes can exercise safely, as long as certain precautions are taken. The presence of diabetes complications should not be used as an excuse to avoid participation in physical activity.” In keeping with the philosophy of ACSM’s Exercise is Medicine® initiative, Colberg urges that physical activity be a conscious part of every person’s health plan, as appropriate for age and physical condition.
High stakes, high yield
The benefits far exceed considerations of an individual’s health and quality of life, say Colberg and other experts. Predictions that one in three Americans will have diabetes by 2050 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) are accompanied by estimates that diabetes and prediabetes in the U.S. will cost almost $500 billion a year by 2020 (UnitedHealth Group, Inc.). According to Colberg, “If current trends go unabated, we are in fact doomed to higher health care costs and drastically reduced quality and length of life due to diabetes-related complications such as heart disease and kidney failure. As individuals, as communities and as part of a nation and world, we have to work collectively to stop diabetes before it stops us.”
Advisory board vice-chair Barbara Ainsworth, PhD, FACSM, discusses the relevance of the ACSM American Fitness Index™ (AFI) to cities across the United States. Dr. Ainsworth comments that AFI highlights the assets and strengths each city posseses as well as the areas for improvement necessary to increase healthy, active living. This information can provide direction to cities interested in improving physical activity among its residents.
Dr. Ainsworth is a professor in the Department of Exercise and Wellness at Arizona State University. Her research relates to physical activity and public health with focuses on the assessment of physical activity in populations, the evaluation of physical activity questionnaires, and on identifying neighborhood environmental supports for physical activity.
The second installment of AFI From the Field features Dr. Felicia D. Stoler, DCN, MS, RD, FACSM, of Holmdel, N.J.
Dr. Stoler is a registered dietitian, exercise physiologist, and expert consultant in nutrition and healthful living. In this video. Dr. Stoler comments on the state of health and fitness in the New York metropolitan area, how she’s helping improve physical activity in her community and her opinion on what makes a city “fit.”
Dr. Stoler points out that all physical activity counts and that exercise does not have to involve a change of clothes, footwear and a shower.
For the third straight year, the Washington, D.C., metro area claimed the highest ranking in the American College of Sports Medicine’s (ACSM) American Fitness IndexTM (AFI). The AFI data report, “Health and Community Fitness Status of the 50 Largest Metropolitan Areas,” evaluates the most populous city areas to determine the healthiest and fittest metro areas in the United States. (Read the official news release.)
The AFI data report reflects a composite of preventive health behaviors, levels of chronic disease conditions, health care access, and community resources and policies that support physical activity.
“The ACSM American Fitness Index not only measures the state of health and fitness in our nation’s largest communities, but evaluates the infrastructure, community assets, policies and opportunities which encourage residents to live a healthy and fit lifestyle,” said AFI Advisory Board Chair Walt Thompson, Ph.D., FACSM. “I liken the data report and rankings to the metro areas ‘getting a physical’ at the doctor’s office. The information learned from the physical will help each metro area identify areas of strength and weakness.”
ACSM received a grant from the WellPoint Foundation, based in Indianapolis, to present the 2010 data report.
The Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA) of Washington-Arlington-Alexandria scored 73.5 (out of 100 possible points) in the AFI data report to achieve the top ranking, just as it did in 2008 and 2009. Metro areas completing the top five were Boston, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Seattle and Portland, Ore. The Baltimore, Md., area (ACSM’s host city for its 2010 Annual Meeting), ranked 20th.
The western United States dominated the top 10, with only three cities lying along the eastern seaboard. The nation’s three largest cities finished in the middle of the pack with New York at 21st, Chicago at 33rd and Los Angeles at 38th.
Education proved to be a valuable predictor of health and fitness; areas with a high percentage of residents with high school degrees or higher are more likely to be physically active and be in excellent or very good health. This group is also more likely to have health insurance.
Considering the challenging economic climate in recent years, the data suggests being unemployed may be a health concern. Metro areas with a higher unemployment rate are more likely to have a higher percentage of death related to cardiovascular disease.
Poverty levels, disability rates and the rate of violent crime correlated with other health concerns, suggesting that health officials and programs may need to put more emphasis on populations that may be underserved. For example, areas with a higher percentage of households below the poverty level are more likely to smoke, be obese, have diabetes, and have both cardiovascular disease and diabetes related deaths. They are less likely to be physically active, in excellent or very good health, and have health insurance.
Check out the full report and rankings.
In addition to measuring the health and fitness of the 50 largest metro areas, the AFI data report aims to help communities develop and implement efforts to raise awareness of the issues and policies affecting health and fitness in their local area.
There are additional tools available on the AFI Web site (www.americanfitnessindex.org) to help kick-start action in the community, spread the message via local media and social networks, and guide local efforts that support health and fitness.
With AFI’s network of health promotion partners, community programs, allied associations and other organizations, each community will be able to tap into best practices and existing resources to address its unique makeup of opportunities and challenges. The ultimate result will be an improvement in community fitness and a reduction in the rates of obesity and other chronic diseases.
ACSM will reveal the healthiest and fittest of America’s 50 most populous metropolitan areas on May 24, 2010, in coordination with SHAPE magazine’s ACSM American Fitness Index™ feature story, “The Top 10 Fittest Cities” in its June issue. The complete rankings are part of the AFI data report, “Health and Community Fitness Status of the 50 Largest Metropolitan Areas.”
The AFI data report, produced in partnership with the WellPoint Foundation, reflects a composite of preventive health behaviors, levels of chronic disease conditions, health care access, as well as community resources and policies that support physical activity.
Stay tuned next week to find out how your community measures up.
From the Trust for Ameria’s Health:
“Adult obesity rates increased in 23 states and did not decrease in a single state in the past year, according to F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies Are Failing in America 2009, a report released today by the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). In addition, the percentage of obese or overweight children is at or above 30 percent in 30 states.”
Learn more about the study here.
Several media outlets helped share the story of the 2009 ACSM American Fitness Index report, “Health and Community Fitness Status of the 50 Largest Metropolitan Areas.”
The first stories appeared in USA Today and Forbes.com. Check them out and help us in creating a healthier and fitter America by sharing the story with others.
If you are interested in sharing the AFI story with your local media, download the Media Advocacy Toolkit now!
