More than 20m UK adults ‘are physically inactive’

Millions of adults in the UK may be at greater risk of heart disease due to physical inactivity, according to a new report.

The Physical Inactivity and Sedentary Behaviour Report from the British Heart Foundation has indicated that over 20 million adults in the UK are failing to meet government guidelines for physical activity, with women being 36 percent more likely to be considered physically inactive than men.

Of all the regions in England where people are most physically inactive, the north-west performed the worst, with almost half the adult population – or 2.7 million people – failing to get the recommended amount of exercise.

The average man in the UK spends one-fifth of their lifetime sitting – the equivalent of 78 days each year, while for women this figure is around 74 days a year. This is despite growing evidence that sedentary lifestyles are associated with poor health.

Indeed, excessive sitting is estimated to cause one in ten premature deaths from coronary heart disease in the UK, and one in six deaths overall, while costing the NHS as much as 1.2 billion pounds each year.

Dr Mike Knapton, associate medical director at the British Heart Foundation, said: "Levels of physical inactivity and sedentary behaviour in the UK remain stubbornly high, and combined, these two risk factors present a substantial threat to our cardiovascular health and risk of early death."

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