June 2003

Report: 25% of Americans are couch potatoes

Encourage your patients to exercise. That’s the word from Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Tommy G. Thompson. He bases his recommendation on a recent report that gives both good and bad news about Americans and exercise.

The good news is that about 1 in 5 American adults engage in a high level of overall physical activity, including both activities at work and during leisure time.

The bad news is at the other end of the spectrum, about 1 in 4 American adults engage in little or no regular physical activity.

"Physical activity — whether it's walking the dog or simply taking the stairs at work —is essential to good health," said Thompson. "This study confirms that we need to pay more attention to getting adequate physical activity and reversing the alarming rise in obesity that we've experienced nationally during the past decade."

The report, "Physical Activity Among Adults: United States, 2000," is the first HHS report to focus on the amount of physical activity during a person's usual daily activities, including work, leisure time, or some combination of the two.

The data comes from about 32,000 interviews conducted in 2000. Other recent studies have focused exclusively on leisure time activity, including one last year that showed 7 in 10 Americans were not regularly active during their leisure time in 1997-98.

Today's new report for 2000 did not find any significant change in the percentage of adults who are physically active in their leisure time. Usual daily activity, in addition to work, includes commuting, running errands, performing household chores, or any other activities not performed during leisure time.

The level of physical activity is determined by how much "moving around and lifting or carrying things" occurs during these usual daily activities. Regular leisure time physical activity consists of exercise, sports or active hobbies that cause light sweating or a slight to moderate increase inbreathing or heart rate occurring five or more times per week for at least 30 minutes each time. Regular leisure time physical activity also could include a vigorous activity that causes heavy sweating or large increases inbreathing or heart rate three or more times a week for at least 20 minutes each time. "It is important for adults to get a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate physical activity most days of the week to help prevent chronic diseases and promote health," CDC Director Dr. Julie Gerberding said.

Source: Health and Human Services, www.hhs.gov/news.

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