The ENPAF strategy’s main message is that a ten-minute bout of exercise everyday goes a long way towards improving overall health, reducing diseases and prolonging life expectancy.
It comes as the Ricardo Jorge National Health Institute unveiled the findings of its latest Insef physical exam survey, which concluded that the Portuguese are highly sedentary and have a high prevalence of hypertension, obesity and diabetes.
In an effort to tackle the problem the ENPAF is developing a wide-reaching multiple-partner campaign to fight laziness and promote exercise as a way of bettering one’s physical condition.
According to the directorate-general “physical inactivity is one of the main risk factors for chronic, non-transmissible diseases and in itself justifies the development of a new strategy for health”, which aims to provide “a structured and inclusive response that promotes physical activity and healthy lifestyles.”
The strategy’s main objective is “to encourage the resident population in the country which currently has low levels of physical inactivity to increase activity and thereby to enjoy the greatest possible number of healthy and disease-free years of life.”
“From a national perspective the priority is to make the population aware of the importance of physical activity for health and the implementation of inter-sectoral and multidisciplinary policies that aim to reduce laziness and raise levels of physical activity.”
Francisco George, head of the DGS, recalled that “the relationship between a lack of physical exercise, a sedentary lifestyle and the occurrence of diseases, particularly chronic diseases” like heart attacks, strokes and excess weight or obesity “is scientifically proven.”
He believes, therefore, that all Portuguese, irrespective of age, should put aside part of their day to exercise for ten minutes or so; simple lifestyle changes such as swapping the lift for stairs, which will be the message of one of the DGS’s campaigns.
“People need to take the lift less”, George says, adding that within the DGS a rule has been implemented in which the lift should only be used to climb above two floors.
Fernando Araújo, deputy State-Secretary for Health, added “it is important that companies have a clear understanding that the healthier their employees are, the better productivity will be.”