Public health Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Public health - Essay Example It is important for the public to continuously be sensitized on the impact that some of the common lifestyle choices such as physical activity, smoking, nutrition and diet can have on their health resulting in a higher risk of developing medical conditions such as cancer and obesity (Sattar and Lean, 2007). This paper will present a report analysis on the prevalence and impact Smoking, Obesity, Cancer and Physical activity across the United Kingdom. The immense benefits of a physically active lifestyle have been relatively well document and there currently exists a large amount of evidence that suggests that regular activity is closely related to significantly reduced risk of an individual developing a number of chronic conditions. Physical activity has repeatedly been shown to contribute to a wide range of health benefits and engaging in regular physical activity can have the effect of improving the health outcomes of an individual regardless of whether the individual is able to achieve weight loss (Dugdill, Crone and Murphy, 2009). According to statistics released by the UK Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC, 2014), a study conducted in the UK in 2012 found that an estimated 55% of women and 67% of men aged 16 years and over were able to meet the prescribed recommendations of aerobic activity while 26% of women and 19% of men were classified as being largely inactive. These figures are seen to be similar to those presented by in a 2013 press release by the UK Public Health Minister Anna Soubry. In the press release, pointed out that a quarter of the population are not doing even 30 min of physical activity a week and as such, these individuals are putting their health at risk (Department of Health, 2013). The survey by the HSCIC (2014) also showed that for both sexes the actual proportion of individuals that are able to meet the aerobic activity guidelines tends to generally decrease with age. The