National Physical Fitness and Sports Month

 

Most adults with disabilities are able to participate in physical activity, yet nearly half of them get no aerobic physical activity. Learn how everybody can make lifestyle changes and include physical activity in their everyday life.  May is National Fitness and Sports Month. CDC recommends finding and creating opportunities to add more physical activity into your daily routine and encourage family and friends to do the same. All adults, with and without disabilities, need at least 2½ hours a week of aerobic physical activity at a moderate-intensity level to increase heart and lung function; to improve daily living activities and independence; to decrease chances of developing chronic diseases; and to improve mental health. Learn how Jonathan, a man with an intellectual disability, finds time to be physically active and encourages others to do the same. Jonathan's story Before Jonathan Doring, 34, goes to bed every night, he logs his physical activities for the day. He tracks his time at the gym, his time on the tennis court, even his time vacuuming or raking. Jonathan makes sure that he finds time in his busy schedule each day to focus on his fitness. Fitness wasn't always a priority for Jonathan, who has Fragile X syndrome. Jonathan's family says he used to stay in his room as a child, but then began competing in sports at age 5, which changed his life. He joined Special Olympics as an athlete when he was 8 years old and he now competes and trains year-round. All adults, with and without disabilities, need at least 2½ hours a week of aerobic physical activity at a moderate-intensity level. Jonathan has also joined the President's Challenge, and the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award program. The Presidential Active Lifestyle Challenge helps participants add physical activity to their lives and improve eating habits. This Challenge is for anyone, from students to seniors, but it's geared toward people who want to set themselves on the road to a healthier life through positive changes to their physical activity and eating behaviors. Jonathan encouraged his father, Mark, to join him and they haven't stopped since. "As Jonathan's strength has increased, so has his self-confidence," says Kathy, Jonathan's mom. "He has joined a local men's tennis league and is competing in USTA [United States Tennis Association] adult tournaments. So, in addition to his regular Special Olympics activities he is playing tennis three days a week and weight training another three. My husband drives him to these events and rather than just spectate he walks or exercises along with his son." Jonathan is a health ambassador because of both the way he lives his life and his role as a spokesperson for Special Olympics. As a spokesperson, he has shared healthy messages with nearly 1,000 Exceptional Student Education students in schools across Florida, his home state, at Fortune 100 company conferences, and even with the Florida Governor. CDC would like to thank Jonathan, the Doring family and Special Olympics for sharing this personal story. 5 helpful tips for people with disabilities If you or somebody in your family has a disability and wants to add more routine physical activity, here are some helpful tips: Visit your doctor. Talk to your doctor about how much and what kind of physical activity is right for you. Discuss your barriers to physical activity. Ask your doctor to put you in contact with resources and programs to help you begin or maintain your physical activity. Find opportunities to add more physical activity into your everyday life. Decide how much physical activity is right for you and your fitness level. Remember, all adults, whether or not they have a disability, should try to get at least 2½ hours a week of moderate-intensity physical activity. If this is not possible, adults with disabilities should avoid being inactive; some activity is better than none! Be active your way. Decide what kind of physical activity you enjoy. General gardening, doing active chores around the house, wheeling yourself in your wheelchair, walking briskly, dancing, playing wheelchair basketball, tennis or soccer are all examples of physical activity that you can add into your everyday life. Start slowly. Start slowly based on your abilities and fitness level. For example, be active for at least 10 minutes at a time, and then slowly increase activity over several weeks if necessary. Have fun with your family. It's easier to stay active when you have the support of your family and friends. Invite your loved ones to have fun with you. For example, together you can play outside with a ball, dance, or walk or wheel around the neighborhood. What CDC and our National Programs are doing CDC supports and provides funding for four National Public Health Practice and Resource Centers that focus on improving the quality of life for people living with disabilities, including physical activity: CDC also supports 18 state-based programs to promote equity in health, prevent chronic disease, and increase the quality of life for people with disabilities. Learn more about the State's disability and health programs.

Coastal living boosts physical activity, study shows

 

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People who live close to the coast are more likely to meet physical activity guidelines than inland dwellers, finds a new study released today.

The research involved participants from across England and describes a particularly noticeable effect on western -- but unexpectedly not eastern -- coasts of the nation.

Publishing their findings in the journal Preventive Medicine, the team from the University of Exeter Medical School analysed data from over 180,000 participants -- collected by Natural England.

Examining the amount of exercise people get through leisure activities as well as simply getting around, the study has shown that visiting the coast, rather than just living near it, is crucial in stimulating physical activity.

However, when the researchers broke down the national pattern by region they found that this effect was present in the northwest and southwest of the country but not in any of the east coast regions. Lead author of the study, Dr Mathew White said:

"It's clear that our coastal paths and beaches provide a wonderful resource for encouraging and enabling physical activity. Participants reported a number of activities from simply walking to more obvious exercise such as swimming or running. However, we're unsure why we're only seeing these effects in western regions of the country. Of course, people in the east also exercise but it doesn't seem to be so connected to coastal activities. We might have uncovered untapped potential for east coast resorts and destinations to be used to encourage exercise and promote healthy lifestyles."

The researchers also took into account differences in factors such as age, social status and season, none of which could account for the regional differences in their findings.

Regular exercise can lower the risk of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and depression and plays an important role in keeping people healthy. Current guidelines recommend at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise each week. Recent findings have shown that people living near to the coast are healthier than those living inland and the results published today suggest that higher levels of physical activity could partly explain why.

Dr Ben Wheeler, one of the paper's co-authors said:

"Whilst not everyone can live near a beach, there are around 8 million people in England who live within 5km of the coast. Combined with over 130 million visits a year from those living further inland, it's clear that coastal locations could offer a fantastic opportunity to get more people active. Whilst plenty of questions remain unanswered, our research suggests that government policy needs to ensure these natural spaces are protected and responsibly promoted."

This study is the largest of its kind and the first to be conducted in a European country. It supports results from smaller-scale studies in Australia and New Zealand.

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Story Source:

The above story is based on materials provided by University of Exeter. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

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Journal Reference:

1. Mathew P. White, Benedict W. Wheeler, Stephen Herbert, Ian Alcock, Michael H. Depledge. Coastal proximity and physical activity: Is the coast an under-appreciated public health resource? Preventive Medicine, 2014; 69: 135 DOI: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2014.09.016

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How physical exercise protects the brain from stress-induced depression

 

September 25, 2014

Karolinska Institutet

Physical exercise has many beneficial effects on human health, including the protection from stress-induced depression. However, until now the mechanisms that mediate this protective effect have been unknown. In a new study in mice, researchers show that exercise training induces changes in skeletal muscle that can purge the blood of a substance that accumulates during stress, and is harmful to the brain.

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In a study in the journal Cell, Jorge Ruas and Maria Lindskog show how physical exercise protects the brain from stress-induced depression in mice.

Physical exercise has many beneficial effects on human health, including the protection from stress-induced depression. However, until now the mechanisms that mediate this protective effect have been unknown. In a new study in mice, researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden show that exercise training induces changes in skeletal muscle that can purge the blood of a substance that accumulates during stress, and is harmful to the brain. The study is being published in the journal Cell.

"In neurobiological terms, we actually still don't know what depression is. Our study represents another piece in the puzzle, since we provide an explanation for the protective biochemical changes induced by physical exercise that prevent the brain from being damaged during stress," says Mia Lindskog, researcher at the Department of Neuroscience at Karolinska Institutet.

It was known that the protein PGC-1a1 (pronounced PGC-1alpha1) increases in skeletal muscle with exercise, and mediates the beneficial muscle conditioning in connection with physical activity. In this study researchers used a genetically modified mouse with high levels of PGC-1a1 in skeletal muscle that shows many characteristics of well-trained muscles (even without exercising).

These mice, and normal control mice, were exposed to a stressful environment, such as loud noises, flashing lights and reversed circadian rhythm at irregular intervals. After five weeks of mild stress, normal mice had developed depressive behaviour, whereas the genetically modified mice (with well-trained muscle characteristics) had no depressive symptoms.

"Our initial research hypothesis was that trained muscle would produce a substance with beneficial effects on the brain. We actually found the opposite: well-trained muscle produces an enzyme that purges the body of harmful substances. So in this context the muscle's function is reminiscent of that of the kidney or the liver," says Jorge Ruas, principal investigator at the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Karolinska Institutet.

The researchers discovered that mice with higher levels of PGC-1a1 in muscle also had higher levels of enzymes called KAT. KATs convert a substance formed during stress (kynurenine) into kynurenic acid, a substance that is not able to pass from the blood to the brain. The exact function of kynurenine is not known, but high levels of kynurenine can be measured in patients with mental illness. In this study, the researchers demonstrated that when normal mice were given kynurenine, they displayed depressive behaviour, while mice with increased levels of PGC-1a1 in muscle were not affected. In fact, these animals never show elevated kynurenine levels in their blood since the KAT enzymes in their well-trained muscles quickly convert it to kynurenic acid, resulting in a protective mechanism.

"It's possible that this work opens up a new pharmacological principle in the treatment of depression, where attempts could be made to influence skeletal muscle function instead of targeting the brain directly. Skeletal muscle appears to have a detoxification effect that, when activated, can protect the brain from insults and related mental illness," says Jorge Ruas.

Depression is a common psychiatric disorder worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that more than 350 million people are affected.

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Story Source:

The above story is based on materials provided by Karolinska Institutet. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

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Journal Reference:

1. Leandro Z. Agudelo, Teresa Femenía, Funda Orhan, Margareta Porsmyr-Palmertz, Michel Goiny, Vicente Martinez-Redondo, Jorge C. Correia, Manizheh Izadi, Maria Bhat, Ina Schuppe-Koistinen, Amanda Pettersson, Duarte M. S. Ferreira, Anna Krook, Romain Barres, Juleen R. Zierath, Sophie Erhardt, Maria Lindskog, and Jorge L. Ruas. Skeletal Muscle PGC-1a1 Modulates Kynurenine Metabolism and Mediates Resilience to Stress-Induced Depression. Cell, September 2014

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Narrow focus on physical activity could be ruining kids' playtime

 

September 21, 2014

University of Montreal

While public health authorities focus on the physical activity benefits of active play, a new study reveals that for children, playing has no goal -- it is an end in itself, an activity that is fun, done alone or with friends, and it represents "an opportunity to experience excitement or pleasure, but also to combat boredom, sadness, fear, or loneliness."'By focusing on the physical activity aspect of play, authorities put aside several aspects of play that are beneficial to young people's emotional and social health,' says a professor.

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While public health authorities focus on the physical activity benefits of active play, a new study from the University of Montreal reveals that for children, playing has no goal -- it is an end in itself, an activity that is fun, done alone or with friends, and it represents "an opportunity to experience excitement or pleasure, but also to combat boredom, sadness, fear, or loneliness." "By focusing on the physical activity aspect of play, authorities put aside several aspects of play that are beneficial to young people's emotional and social health," explains Professor Katherine Frohlich of the university's Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, who supervised the study. "Play is a way to achieve various objectives, including the improvement of physical health and the development of cognitive and social aptitudes. Obviously, we must ensure children's development and combat obesity. But to get there, must we distort play?"

The study involved a photography and interview project with 25 Montreal area children, aged 7 to 11 years, as they photographed and talked about their favourite ways to play. One 10 year old girl loved climbing on a modern art sculpture near her home, for example. "Play is an activity that brings pleasure and is purposeless," explained the study's first author Dr. Stephanie Alexander, also of the university's Department of Social and Preventive Medicine. Children's photographs of their leisure activities show that sports are well represented -- balls, bicycles, hockey, and baseball -- but so are many sedentary activities, such as puzzles, knitting, reading, movies, and video games. Animals and pets were also photographed by many.

The semi-structured interviews allowed Alexander to better understand the meaning of play for the children. "Play reframed as a way for improving physical health removes the spontaneity, fun, and freedom in children's play, which is also important for their well-being," Alexander said. "Active play alone does not make up many children's preferences." It is also clear that risk-taking is an integral part of children's play preferences. "Allowing children to take acceptable risks while remaining vigilant is indeed beneficial to their development," Alexander added. "An overemphasis on safety may contribute to the emergence of a generation of young people that is less and less able to cope with the unpredictable."

In summary, the researchers identified four dimensions of play particularly important to children: play as an end in itself (children play for fun, not for exercise or for developing their mental and social skills); play isn't necessarily active (many children also enjoy more sedentary games); children feel ambiguous about scheduled play activities (children have little time for free play); and risk is considered a pleasurable component of their play. "Despite the abundance of messages targeting children and play and health, children's perspectives are rarely taken into account within public health, although they have social and scientific value," Frohlich said. "We hope that our findings will inform and improve the way authorities and indeed parents approach playtime."

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Story Source:

The above story is based on materials provided by University of Montreal. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

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Journal Reference:

1. S. A. Alexander, K. L. Frohlich, C. Fusco. Problematizing "Play-for-Health" Discourses Through Children's Photo-Elicited Narratives. Qualitative Health Research, 2014; 24 (10): 1329 DOI: 10.1177/1049732314546753