PHYSICAL-ACTIVITY AND CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH

Objective.-To provide physicians and the general public with a respons ible assessment of the relationship between physical activity and card iovascular health. Participants.-A nonfederal, nonadvocate, 13-member panel representing the fields of cardiology, psychology, exercise phys iology, nutrition, pediatrics, public health, and epidemiology. In add ition, 27 experts in cardiology, psychology, epidemiology, exercise ph ysiology, geriatrics, nutrition, pediatrics, public health, and sports medicine presented data to the panel and a conference audience of 600 during a 2-day public session. Questions and statements from conferen ce attendees were considered during the open session. Closed deliberat ions by the panel occurred during the remainder of the second day and the morning of the third day. Evidence.-The literature was searched th rough MEDLINE and an extensive bibliography of references was provided to the panel and the conference audience. Experts prepared abstracts with relevant citations from the literature. Scientific evidence was g iven precedence over clinical anecdotal experience. Consensus Process. -The panel, answering predefined questions, developed their conclusion s based on the scientific evidence presented in open forum and the sci entific literature. Consensus Statement.-The panel composed a draft st atement that was read in its entirety and circulated to the experts an d the audience for comment. Thereafter, the panel resolved conflicting recommendations and released a revised statement at the end of the co nference. The panel finalized the revisions within a few weeks after t he conference. Conclusions.-All Americans should engage in regular phy sical activity at a level appropriate to their capacity, needs, and in terest. Children and adults alike should set a goal of accumulating at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity on most, and preferably all, days of the week. Most Americans have little or no ph ysical activity in their daily lives, and accumulating evidence indica tes that physical inactivity is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease. However, moderate levels of physical activity confer signifi cant health benefits. Even those who currently meet these daily standa rds may derive additional health and fitness benefits by becoming more physically active or including more vigorous activity. For those with known cardiovascular disease, cardiac rehabilitation programs that co mbine physical activity with reduction in other risk factors should be more widely used.