Health Promotion and Health Benefits

What is health promotion?

Health promotion is the process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health. “To reach a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, an individual or group must be able to identify and to realize aspirations, to satisfy needs, and to change or cope with the environment. Health is, therefore, seen as a resource for everyday life, not the objective of living. Health is a positive concept emphasizing social and personal resources, as well as physical capacities. Therefore, health promotion is not just the responsibility of the health sector, but goes beyond healthy life-styles to well-being” (Fritze, Blashki, Burke & Wiseman p. 3, 2008).

Health Benefits of Regular Physical Exercise: What are the Facts?

Regular physical activity provides enormous health benefits. It helps reduce heart disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes and many other diseases and metabolic conditions. “Regular fitness exercise is also highly beneficial for weight reduction and weight maintenance, and may improve brain chemistry to reduce depression. By contrast, health studies that have monitored the wellbeing of large groups of people over many years clearly show that inactivity significantly increases the risk of overweight, obesity and chronic diseases” (Fox p. 22, 2009).

The Health Benefits of Exercise

- improves your chances of living longer
- improves quality of life
- reduces the risk of heart disease
- helps lower high blood pressure (hypertension) and high cholesterol
- helps protect you from developing certain cancers
- helps prevent or control type 2 diabetes (adult-onset diabetes)
- reduces the risk of arthritis and alleviates associated symptoms
- helps prevent osteoporosis (gradual loss of bone mass/strength)
- improves mobility and strength in later life
- alleviates symptoms of depression and anxiety