Exercise

Unlocking the True Power of Physical Activity: The Medicine We Overlook

Physical activity is the most powerful tool for preventing chronic diseases and improving overall well-being. Yet, many overlook its immense potential. Exercise reduces the risk of over 25 conditions and can add years to your life. It's time to prioritize movement for better health and longevity.

Terje Myrvold

17 Sep 2024 • 4 min read

While the benefits of exercise are unrivaled, it's astonishing how we often ignore its immense potential for health. Imagine a treatment that could prevent numerous chronic illnesses, increase longevity, and improve overall well-being—yet, many of us fail to embrace it fully. How did we reach a point where we treat this wonder drug like a forgotten tool?

Exercise: The Foundation of Health

The scientific community is clear: physical activity is a game-changer when it comes to preventing disease. It’s proven to reduce the risk of developing more than 25 chronic conditions by up to 50%, including some of the most common health issues today, such as heart disease, diabetes, and mental health disorders.

What’s even more shocking is how widespread inactivity has become, with over 75% of the population in Norway failing to meet basic activity guidelines. This inactivity is now the leading lifestyle risk factor for poor health—more dangerous than smoking or high cholesterol. Yet, it's the simplest change we can make to transform our health.

Unmatched Benefits With No Downsides

Exercise is a true multi-tasker. It plays a critical role in preventing diseases like cancer, stroke, osteoporosis, and even depression, but its effects extend far beyond the physical. A regular activity routine improves mood, sleep quality, energy levels, and provides a sense of achievement that contributes to mental and emotional well-being.

Unlike medications, which often come with side effects, the "side effects" of exercise are overwhelmingly positive.

More Effective Than Medication

A recent study revealed that maintaining an active lifestyle could add up to 24 years to your life. When combined with a healthy diet, enough sleep, and limited alcohol intake, physical activity stands out as the single most important factor in achieving good health. In fact, exercise alone accounts for nearly half of the life-extending benefits of a healthy lifestyle.

To put it into perspective, the best preventive medications, such as statins for cholesterol, only add a few days to life expectancy. On the other hand, physical activity can cut your risk of premature death by over 50%. This includes a similar reduction in the likelihood of developing heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.

If there were a pill that could do this, it would be heralded as a medical miracle. But physical activity remains underappreciated and underused in mainstream healthcare despite being proven more effective than most preventive medicines.

Shifting the Focus: From Treatment to Prevention

We need a new approach. As healthcare systems struggle with rising costs and an increasingly unhealthy population, the solution is clear—focus on prevention. Sadly, only 3% of healthcare budgets are spent on preventing disease, with the vast majority going to treatments. Inactivity alone is estimated to cost society billions each year, and yet, it remains overlooked.

Doctors and healthcare professionals need to lead the way by prioritizing physical activity as a first-line treatment. The current model, which emphasizes medication over lifestyle interventions, needs to be rethought. It's time to move away from simply managing symptoms and instead address the root causes of chronic diseases.

Building a Healthier Future

For long-term change, we need to start early. Education on physical activity and healthy living must be a core part of school curriculums and continue throughout life. Medical professionals, in particular, should receive better training on how to integrate lifestyle interventions into their practice. This shift could prevent countless diseases, improve the quality of life, and ease the burden on healthcare systems.

The message is simple but powerful: physical activity is the most accessible, effective tool we have for maintaining health and longevity. It’s time we stop overlooking this miracle and start treating it as the valuable medicine it truly is.

Adapted from:

"Den Neglisjerte Vidundermedisinen," by Øyvind Kjerpeset, originally published in Tidsskriftet.

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