Sedentary Lifestyles- Facts

Facts about sedentary lifestyles:

Estimates indicate that nearly 250,000 deaths per year in the US — about 12  percent of total deaths — are due to a lack of regular physical activity.  Surveys show that only 22 percent of American adults get enough leisure-time  exercise to achieve cardiovascular fitness. The 1991-92 Behavioral Risk Factor  Surveillance Study data show the following have a sedentary lifestyle:

  • Caucasian population — 56.2 percent men and 56.4 percent  women
  • African-American population — 62.8 percent men and  67.7 percent women
  • Hispanic population — 61.5 percent men and 61.9 percent  women
  • Asian/Pacific Islanders — 56.6 percent men and 64.7  percent women
  • American Indian/Alaskan Natives — 50.8 percent men and  64.1 percent women

It has also been found that people with lower incomes and less than a 12th  grade education are more likely to lead a sedentary lifestyle. Thirty-eight  percent of people age 55 and older report essentially sedentary lifestyles.

One National Children and Youth Fitness Study found  that:

  • at least half of youth do not engage in physical activity that promotes  long-term health.
  • less than 36 percent of elementary and secondary schools offer daily  physical education classes.
  • most classes were unlikely to foster lifelong physical activity.

Source: Risks of Physical Inactivity – Maryland Heart Center | University of Maryland Medical Center http://umm.edu/programs/heart/health/the-heart/inactivity#ixzz2fd7YeV00 University of Maryland Medical