Physical Inactivity (Public Health)

Jim Shannon Excerpts

Tuesday 18th November 2014 Westminster Hall

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

I congratulate the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent (Nick Smith) on bringing this issue forward for consideration.

When we look at the figures for physical inactivity, some of them are horrendous. In a world where we are so image and health conscious, it makes me wonder why we have not moved forward in the way that we should have done.

We followed the Olympic games in 2012 by putting an emphasis on making more people do forms of exercise. Cycling was in, the gas-guzzlers were out and pedal power seemed to be winning the day.

We also have to look at ourselves, because we are all different—in fact, unique. We are all different shapes and sizes. Also, some of us have faster metabolisms than others. Some of us could eat buns and cakes until the cows come home and not get fat; others just look at buns and cakes and their waistline expands straight away. That is what we are—different—so sometimes we have our own in-built systems that have to be addressed as well, and physical activity is a way of doing that. We want to try to ensure that those who are inactive consider physical activity; if they do not do more physical activity, their lives could be shortened.

Thirty minutes of exercise—three 10-minute blocks of exercise—can increase our life span, and reduce our chances of developing a wide variety of diseases. I am a type 2 diabetic myself. My developing diabetes was not necessarily down to a lack of exercise; it was down to diet. What we eat is therefore also important. Physical activity is important, but so is diet.

There are international figures to show the number of people who are not getting the recommended levels of physical activity. In the Netherlands, the figure is just 18% of the population; in Germany, 28%; in France, 33%; Finland and Australia are tied at 38%; they are followed by the USA, the stereotypical view of which is that everything is supersized, including people’s thighs, and 41% of its population are not reaching the levels of activity recommended; but the figure for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is 63%, so we are at the wrong end of the scale, unfortunately.

Why is that important? It is important because Finland in 1970, for example, had the highest rate of heart disease in the whole of Europe, but now Finland has one of the lowest rates of premature cardiovascular deaths in Europe, the figure having dropped by 65% since 1970. In Finland, men are now living for an average of seven years longer, and women for an average of eight years longer, than they did in 1970. The right hon. Member for Rother Valley (Kevin Barron), who spoke before me, was absolutely right when he said that it has taken decades for that type of change to happen, but we have to start somewhere and hopefully we can start here.

At present, physical inactivity is responsible for 17% of premature deaths in the UK. According to ukactive, if everyone in England achieved their recommended amount of physical activity, 37,000 lives would be saved each year. Unfortunately, the other part of that equation is that if action is not taken, that figure of 17% will increase by another 15% by 2030. That is why the Government need to encourage the general public to be more active. In her response, perhaps the Minister could consider defining physical activity as a stand-alone public health issue, as has been requested by the World Health Organisation.

In its report, “Steps to solving inactivity”, ukactive found a clear correlation between physical inactivity and deprivation. That is also why this issue should be prioritised in public health, education, social care and transport policy. Active children are more likely to be active adults, so the education in this area must start at home at an early stage. It is for not only the Department of Health, but the Department for Education and other Departments to consider. When it comes to the education of children, we all know the benefits of eating well and exercising.

The right hon. Member for Rother Valley said that when we were younger we had physical exercise; we did not have Facebook or Xboxes. That is a fact. Some parents even tell me that their children contact them in the kitchen below by texting or Facebooking them from the bedroom above. That is ridiculous, but it is a fact; that is sometimes how things are done. That is where we are moving to, and we have to address those issues. We are also in a different age, one where the vulnerability of children is greater than before, and we are obviously concerned about that.

In his introduction to the debate, the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent referred to the anti-smoking campaign. It has been so successful that since 1998 1.5 million people have stopped smoking. Physical inactivity is the fourth largest cause of disease and disability in the UK, contributing to one in six deaths here. When we consider what the anti-smoking campaign achieved, I believe that we can do the same when it comes to promoting physical activity. Exercise is necessary for everyone’s health, regardless of their shape and size.