In a new set of physical activity guidelines the UK government says as soon as they can walk, toddlers and pre-schoolers should be physically active for at least three hours every day to stay healthy and avoid getting chronic diseases later in life. The guidelines are in a new report issued today, 11 July 2011, by the UK’s four Chief Medical Officers titled “Start Active, Stay Active”. The report spells out how often and what type of physical activity all people young and old throughout the UK should be doing at each stage of their lives to protect their health.

The guidelines separate life stages into the early years (under 5 years old), children and teenagers (from 5 to under 19 years), adults (19 to 64) and older adults (65 and over). It is the first time in the UK that such advice covers the early years and the later years.

“Regular physical activity can reduce the risk of many chronic conditions including coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, cancer, obesity, mental health problems and musculoskeletal conditions,” says the report.

“Even relatively small increases in physical activity are associated with some protection against chronic diseases and an improved quality of life,” it adds.

The report also covers the risk of excessive sedentary behaviour for all ages, because there is now evidence that this is independently linked to ill health, regardless of overall volume of physical activity.

And for the first, time, the report also emphasizes the benefit of vigorous physical activity, pointing out that earlier messages suggesting you did not have to be a sportsman or gymnast to exercise and benefit health, may have inadvertently led people to assume there were no health benefits from vigorous physical activity.

“This is not the case. These new guidelines have a clear and consistent message on the importance of vigorous physical activity that will have a particular resonance with people who enjoy more vigorous sport and exercise,” says the report.

The document is aimed primarily at the NHS, local authorities, gyms, sports centers, active travel companies, and other organizations that offer services to promote physical activity to benefit health. It supersedes an earlier 2004 document titled “At least five a week”.

Although written mainly for policymakers, professionals and practitioners, the Chief Medical Officers say in their Foreword they would like as many people as possible to “become aware of these guidelines and use them to achieve the recommended activity levels”.

Specifically for the various age groups, the guidelines recommend:

  • For the under fives: physical activity should be encouraged from birth, such as through “floor-based play”, and being active in a safe way in water.
  • Once they can walk unaided, toddlers and pre-schoolers should be physically active for at least 180 minutes a day, spread through the day.
  • Apart from when they are asleep, under 5s should not be sedentary for long periods (eg restrained in a pushchair, or just sitting).
  • For children and teenagers: they should do between 60 minutes and several hours a day of moderate to vigorous physical activity, and on at least three days a week, this should be vigorous to strengthen muscle and bone. Sitting for extended periods should be discouraged.
  • Adults should be active every day, with the amount over a week adding up to at least 150 minutes (2.5 hours) of moderate to vigorous physical activity, in bouts of at least 10 minutes or more.
  • One way for adults to achieve their recommended level is by exercising 30 minutes on five or more days a week. However, the guidelines also suggest that “comparable benefits can be achieved through 75 minutes of vigorous intensity activity spread across the week or a combination of moderate and vigorous intensity activity”.
  • Adults should also include muscle strengthening activity on at least two days every week.
  • For older adults the general advice is that some physical activity is better than none, as even a little can benefit physical health and cognitive function, although more is better, particularly if it is done every day.
  • Older people should aim for at least 150 mins (2.5 hrs) of moderate activity every week in bouts of 10 mins or more (eg do 30 mins on at least 5 days a week), although 75 mins of vigourous or moderate and vigorous activity spread through the week will also bring comparable benefits.
  • As for younger adults, older adults should also aim to do muscle strengthening activity on at least two days a week.
  • Because of the increased risk of falls, older adults should also incorporate balance and co-ordination improving exercises on at least two days a week.
  • And all adults, young and old, should avoid sitting or being sedentary for extended periods.

The UK’s four Chief Medical Officers Professor Dame Sally Davies (England), Harry Burns (Scotland), Dr Tony Jewell (Wales) and Dr Michael McBride (Northern Ireland), say they drew upon a number of sources in compiling the report, including “international experts engaged in the World Health Organization Global Recommendations on Physical Activity for Health”, and “recent international, large-scale reviews in the United States and Canada”.

Among their recommendations they suggest various ways that government and employers can do more to help individuals achieve these guidelines.

For example, local authorities should do more to encourage cycling, they say, referring to cities in mainland Europe where four out of every 10 journeys are taken on a bike thanks to infrastructure investment and pro-cycling policies.

Workplaces are also a major influencer of behaviour, and employers need to do more than just install a gym at the office. While that’s a start, there are other measures they can take to promote physical activity, such as encouraging active commuting and providing showers for cyclists and walkers, says the report.

Link to UK Physical Activity Guidelines.

Written by: Catharine Paddock, PhD