this has been found to be particularly effective in the treatment of hypertension, obesity and diabetes, but we can say that motor activity is also a good therapy against aging (which is not a pathological condition but a state in which there is a slow degeneration of the our organism that progressively leads to a lower functionality of our systems, functionality that through physical activity can be maintained for longer).
In this case, the motor activities that must be carried out have a certain specificity and change for each pathological condition to be treated "
- Motor therapeutic activity adapted for hypertensive
- Therapeutic motor activity adapted for diabetics
- Motor therapeutic activity adapted for overweight or obese subjects.
- Elimination of smoking;
- Elimination of unbalanced diets especially those with a high fat content;
- Eliminate or at least reduce the intake of alcohol and drugs.
These are the seemingly easiest changes to make in our lifestyles; in reality it is not so, often these bad habits - including a sedentary lifestyle - are the most difficult to eliminate, the subject, despite being aware of the risks that these factors entail, cannot do without them.
Overcoming this psychological barrier has now become a serious problem for our health.
general must be carried out at any age and repeated at least once a year and are:
- Family history, personal physiology, pathology;
- General objective examination and of the single organs and systems;
- Laboratory investigations (ECG at rest and under strain, respiratory tests);
- Any other examinations will be carried out in relation to the clinical findings.
Some pathologies exclude the possibility of practicing physical exercise, others such as hypertension, diabetes or obesity require special precautions and in this case a specific motor activity will take place.
, towards which there was not much to do; on the contrary, we have seen how this is a pathology that can be effectively combated, whose causal factors are not exclusively linked to aging, but also to negative behaviors, attitudes and lifestyles, which significantly increase its onset.Let us remember that stroke is the first cause of disability, the second cause of dementia and the third cause of death in technologically advanced countries, therefore the best weapon to fight it is prevention.
Motor activity has been the subject of studies for years to evaluate its preventive efficacy against stroke; in the current state of knowledge, it is reasonable to recommend moderate intensity aerobic physical activity as a permanent modification of lifestyle .
Today we can say with certainty that it is the most effective means for maintaining a good state of health and for the prevention of various diseases, in particular cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, metabolic (diabetes and obesity), osteo-articular (osteoporosis), hypertension. and cancer.
The numerous scientific evidences have led the large national and international health organizations to propose physical activity as the main health goal. Promoting physical activity has therefore become a priority public health action, often included in health plans and planning in around the world; some examples are represented by the "WHO (World Health Organization), the United States National Health Plan" Healthy People 2010 "and the" European Union "Public Health Program (2003-2008)" which identify the " physical activity as one of the main health goals for the country.
In Italy, first the 2003-2005 National Health Plan, which emphasizes the "importance of physical activity for health, and then also the more recent 2006-2008 National Health Plan, address the issue of sedentary lifestyle, in particular from the point of view of causes of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.
From this point of view, all those initiatives aimed on the one hand at studying and monitoring the national situation (such as the Passi study), on the other hand at promoting physical activity prevention and promotion activities in the area are important.
As indicated in the Report on the state of health of the country 2003-2004, among the possible lines of action on the subject of promoting physical activity, to be developed both centrally and locally, some are considered more effective from a "perspective of public health:
increase the time dedicated to physical activity inside and outside the school and encourage children and adolescents to carry out at least 30 minutes of daily physical activity, also through agreements that provide for the facilitation of access to recreational and sports facilities (school, municipal or other type);
- develop educational activities for children about physical activity, as an integral part of health education programs; encourage employers to facilitate the practice of regular physical activity by employees;
- support the carrying out of individual or team sporting practices by citizens through, for example, the organization of events or tournaments;
- promote the development of urban environments that encourage physical activity, including the availability of cycle paths and pedestrian paths on itineraries also of scenic and historical-artistic interest, inviting the use of stairs, for example with signs placed in strategic points at the automatic systems (lifts, escalators, etc.).
Unfortunately, today the populations of the whole world, mainly the technologically advanced ones, still show a too high level of sedentary lifestyle, for this reason the promotion campaigns in the future should be strengthened; perhaps in this sense something is changing, it seems that the various nations and large health organizations are studying new promotional maneuvers to bring people closer to physical activity.
Certainly no prediction can be made; it will be the results that will be obtained in the future that will make us understand whether these maneuvers have been effective or not.
It seems to me necessary to clarify that the blame for an increasingly widespread sedentary lifestyle cannot be attributed exclusively to a poor effectiveness of promotional programs.
In this regard, I would like to conclude by addressing a problem of great complexity that hinders the efforts made in recent years, to bring people closer to motor practice.
The promotion of physical activity carried out in the various countries in recent years has mainly aimed, through information (TV, newspapers, radio, school, family doctor, etc.), to make people understand the "importance of physical activity and its benefits.
At least in this it seems that promotion has done a great job, as today most people are aware of the "importance of" physical activity.
The question that arises spontaneously at this point is: why does man move less and less despite being aware of the benefits of motor activity?
In addition to the reasons cited several times concerning the "advent of the modern and technological era", the answers should be sought in that wealth of knowledge, habits, beliefs and values (culture) that every individual has, and where unfortunately physical activity is not considered. a means to enhance the health of our body, but a means to cure the external appearance of our body or to have economic advantages, following a logic of having and appearing that is very widespread in today's society.
To bring people closer to physical activity, therefore, it is not enough to understand the benefits that this has, we must be motivated as well as aware; movement must accompany us in all phases of our life, there is a need to recover a theory and a practice of culture that do not consider corporeality an accessory and ornamental value to be disposed of, but constitutive of the "human person".
For further information: Stroke - Preventive motor activity against Stroke For further information: Prevention of Stroke: Role of Motor Activity
