Contents | Search | eMJA Home     

Med J Aust 2000; 173 Suppl 6 November: S107-S108

Australia's national physical activity guidelines recommend that adults accumulate at least 30 minutes of moderate intensity activity (such as walking) most days of the week.¹ These guidelines are based on evidence which shows that activity at or above this level is associated with a number of health benefits, including reduced risk of coronary heart disease, hypertension, diabetes mellitus and colon cancer, and reduced risk of premature mortality.² Exercise recommended for osteoporosis prevention includes activities that stress the skeleton through the impact of weight-bearing exercise (eg, brisk walking, aerobics or tennis) or through muscle pull from resistance strength training.³ Such exercises may reduce the risk of osteoporosis directly by maintaining or reducing bone loss, or indirectly by reducing the risk of falling by improving muscle strength, balance and coordination. Regular physical activity is also linked to psychosocial health. Activity reduces depression and anxiety, improves mood, and has also been associated with increased ability to perform daily tasks.² Unfortunately, many Australians do not fully recognise the health benefits of moderate-intensity activities such as walking.⁴

Despite the many benefits of physical activity, population surveys show that large numbers of Australian women are not sufficiently active to promote health and protect against disease. A recent statewide study in Victoria showed that 12% of women were sedentary, and that a further 39% engaged in only low levels of physical activity, leaving only 51% who were adequately active.⁵ In addition, the proportion of women considered inadequately active increased with age. Twenty-seven per cent of women aged 18-24 years were inadequately active; this increased to 56% of women aged 65-75 years.⁵ There is evidence that decreased participation in physical activity among females may begin in childhood,⁶ and physical inactivity in childhood has been reported to be a risk factor for inactivity in adulthood.⁷ There are also limited data that support the notion that exercise behaviours in childhood influence attitudes to physical activity during adulthood.⁸ Thus, increasing the physical activity levels of middle-aged and older women may be achieved by developing long term initiatives aimed at increasing activity levels and improving attitudes to physical activity in young girls.

Women's participation in physical activity is influenced by their preferences for activity, the barriers they face in being active, and their life circumstances affecting opportunities to be active. For example, motherhood has been linked to less participation in physical activity. Women with young children are less likely to be active than other women, and inactivity increases with the number of children.^6,9 Women with young children commonly cite the lack of time and childcare facilities as barriers to their participation in physical activity.¹⁰ Provision of childcare facilities is an important component of any strategy aimed at encouraging mothers to be active. Older women more often report injury or poor health as factors that inhibit their capacity to be physically active.^10,11 Thus, for older women, moderate-level activities such as walking are probably more likely to be adopted and maintained than those that promote more vigorous forms of exercise. Walking groups have been successful in attracting older women, with the social aspects of these groups an important consideration for many women.¹²

Summary Significant health benefits are associated with moderate-intensity physical activity. Only half of the women in Australia are adequately active. Strategies aimed at promoting physical activity among women should provide suitable activities and take into account the dominant barriers faced by women at different life stages.

References

1. National physical activity guidelines for Australians. Canberra: Commonwealth Department of Health and Aged Care, 1999.
2. United States Department of Health and Human Services. Physical activity and health: a report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, Ga.: Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 1996.
3. Forwood M. Exercise recommendations for oestoporosis. A position statement of the Australian and New Zealand Bone and Mineral Society. Aust Fam Physician 2000; 29: 761-764.
4. Timperio A, Cameron-Smith D, Burns C, et al. Physical activity beliefs and behaviours among adults attempting weight control. Int J Obes 2000; 24: 81-87.
5. Smith JR, Owen N, Leslie E, Bauman A. Active for life: physical activity patterns and health impacts in Victoria 1998. Melbourne: Victorian Department of Human Services, 1999.
6. Women's Health Australia. Data book for baseline survey of the Australian Longitudinal Study of Women's Health. Newcastle: University of Newcastle, 1997.
7. Raitakari OT, Porkka KV, Taimela S, et al. Effects of persistent physical activity and inactivity on coronary risk factors in children and young adults. The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study. Am J Epidemiol 1994; 140: 195-205.
8. Cheung LWY, Richmond JB, editors. Child health, nutrition, and physical activity. Champaign, Ill.: Human Kinetics, 1995.
9. Taylor WC, Baranowski T, Sallis JF. Family determinants of childhood physical activity: A social cognitive model. In: Dishman RK, editor. Advances in exercise adherence. Champaign, Ill: Human Kinetics, 1994: 319-342.
10. Bauman A, Bellew B, Booth M, et al. NSW Health Promotion Survey 1994: Towards best practice for the promotion of physical activity in the areas of New South Wales. Sydney: NSW Health Department, 1996.
11. Booth ML, Bauman A, Owen N, Gore C. Physical activity preferences, preferred sources of assistance, and perceived barriers to increased activity among physically inactive Australians. Prev Med 1997; 26: 131-137.
12. Jones J, Owen N. Neighbourhood walk: a local community-based program to promote physical activity among older adults. Health Prom J Aust 1998; 8: 145-147.

   to summary...

Readers may print a single copy of these pages for personal use. No further reproduction or distribution of the articles should proceed without the permission of the publisher. For permission, contact the Australasian Medical Publishing Company
Journalists are welcome to write news stories based on what they read here, but should acknowledge their source as "an article published on the Internet by The Medical Journal of Australia <http://www.mja.com.au>".

<URL: http://www.mja.com.au/> © 2000 Medical Journal of Australia.
We appreciate your comments.