![]() | Feature: Healthy Living Move for Health | No.49 January 2007 |
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The World Health Organization's (WHO) initiative
to promote health-enhancing physical activity (HEPA) has been taken seriously
worldwide. Since 2002, the slogan Move for Health (MfH) has been translated
into at least 63 languages, along with a subtitle describing each year's
theme and the Day itself is being celebrated in more and more countries.
MfH refers particularly to the need for daily, cumulative, moderate-to-vigorous
physical activities, of any type, that an individual can perform anywhere
to improve his or her health. In addition, MfH refers to how individuals,
communities and nations can promote their health and well-being through
healthy lifestyles. It has become evident that physical activity does
not any more belong only to sport but also to healthcare.
Originally, HEPA was a theme of WHO’s annual Health Day (4 April),
but, because of the utmost importance of physical activity to health
and well-being, the decision was made to promote HEPA annually in a
dedicated day. Since 2002, WHO has urged the world's countries to promote
MfH nationally, preferably on 10th of May. The 2007 theme will be Active
Workplaces. The theme should be adopted with a scope wide enough to
include all kinds of workplaces. The workplace can be one's home, a
kindergarten, a school or a retirement home. To others it will be a
factory, office or business enterprise. For still others it might be
a forest or a farmhouse. Most importantly, MfH Day should adhere to
a permanent message: to promote physical activity every day and everywhere,
to wake up all of those who have not yet embraced the idea that daily
physical activity is a fundamental element of well-being and a healthy
lifestyle.
Strong national commitment and support constitute an essential prerequisite
for the launching, strengthening and sustainability of any MfH initiative
at the national level. In Finland, an important step in promoting the
WHO recommendations and a physically active way of life was taken in
May 2004 when a prestigious Advisory Board chaired by Dr Pekka Puska
of the National Public Health Institute (KTL) called on the Finnish
people to move for their health. In addition, the Board included representatives
of the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health,
the National Board of Education, the Finnish Broadcasting Company, Finnish
Defence Forces, major cities, mass media, Finnish Sport for All Association
and major sports organisations, among others. The Finnish Society of
Sport Sciences issued the call for partners and attended to promotion
of the campaign. The coalition of Finnish labour organisations and social
partners published a resolution to promote physical activity among both
employees and employers in workplaces.
Since the initial meeting of the Board, many meetings of the Working
Group for Move for Health at the Finnish Society of Sport Sciences have
occurred, resulting in a network of participating organisations that
finally is making the population move. At the moment, again, we are
activating local organisations so that they will pass the message on
to the grass roots and local activists, asking them to organise their
own campaigns. To this end, activities of the Working Group include:
The snowball of Liiku Terveemmäksi (the Finnish version of Move
for Health) is picking up speed. Finland has gotten off to a good start
by exchanging ideas and benchmarking best practices in a matter which
we Finns consider of the highest priority. The next step is to speed
up the processes. The well-rooted Ministry of Education and Ministry
of Social Affairs and Health backed Kunnossa kaiken ikää (Fit
for Life Program) has agreed to take a more prominent role in the Finnish
Move for Health campaign by adding to the services in cooperation with
the Finnish Society of Sport Sciences. Furthermore, the Finnish Sport
for All Association will be the main standard-bearer for the Active
Workplaces theme during the 2007 world campaign.
The message has now gone out to all national players,
who are willingly continuing their activities, that each player will be
giving their own tone to the implementation of this year's theme. More
information about the world campaign can be obtained at http://www.who.int/moveforhealth/en/, and about the Finnish campaign at www.liikuterveemmaksi.fi. Contact
Lauri Tarasti Administrative Supreme Court Finland
Antti Uutela
National Public Health Institute; Helsinki, Finland Finland ![]() http://www.icsspe.org/portal/index.php?w=1&z=5 |