A new report from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health shows that only half of adults meet physical activity guidelines

A new report from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health shows that only half of adults meet physical activity guidelines and the progress has stalled since 2014. Despite a slight rise since 2008, targets for 2030 appear out of reach.

Physical activity can prevent the development of a number of lifestyle diseases and premature death (1). Increased knowledge about physical activity levels and habits related to physical activity in the population is therefore central, both with regard to following developments over time and in order to be able to implement necessary measures. In the national action plan for physical activity (2005-2009) – Together for physical activity – one of the measures was to establish a system for monitoring physical activity levels and physical fitness in the population. As part of this work, the Directorate of Health until 2016 and subsequently the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI) financed five national surveys of objectively measured physical activity. Three of the surveys were conducted on children and adolescents (2-4) and two were conducted on adults and the elderly (5, 6) (Table 1). A total of 17,675 people participated. However, the participation rate has varied from 89% among 9-year-olds to 32% among adults. It has been particularly challenging to recruit older people and people with an immigrant background. All studies have been planned and coordinated by the Department of Sports Medicine at the Norwegian School of Sports Medicine (NIH) in collaboration with the Norwegian Directorate of Health and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.

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