Why It's Important To Wear Sports Protective Gear When You Are Doing Exercise?
The promotion of physical exercise is an essential strategy for health promotion. However, a sizeable proportion of health gains are lost due to sports injuries. As safety concerns are a factor in the decision to participate in sports, reducing the injury risk is also an essential strategy of public health policies. A prerequisite for targeted programs is the assessment of injury risks associated with certain activities, facilities, products, and services. Usual health statistics (deaths, hospital discharges, medical treatments) do not contain this kind of information. In order to compensate for this shortcoming, 12 EU countries have implemented a monitoring system with a focus on external circumstances, based on samples of hospitals (A+E departments) – the European Injury Data Base (IDB). It allows for rough but comparable estimates of incidence rates. In the course of an ongoing EU project, a survey on sports injuries in the European Union (500 million inhabitants) has been derived, for the first time. According to the IDB definitions of sports, annually about 4.5 million people aged 15 years and older have to be treated in EU hospitals for sports injuries. Team ball sports account for 40% of all hospital-treated sports injuries, incontestably led by football (soccer). Two third of injuries affect men, although with huge differences in the various types of sport. IDB data allow also for more detailed analyses of injury mechanisms. The potential of the IDB system for guiding prevention programs will also be illustrated in an exemplary way.
• Promotion of health and its benefits through physical activity and educational health promotion programs.
• Strengthen health security of high visibility sports events in countries where major sports events take place are well prepared for health or safety issues related to sports events and mass gatherings.
• Assist in making sports safe by preventing injuries, social exclusion, and violence.
Physical activity refers to all movement, including sports, cycling, wheeling, walking, active recreation, and play. It can be done at any level of skill and for enjoyment by everybody.
Regular physical activity helps prevent and treat noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and breast and colon cancer. It also helps prevent hypertension, overweight, and obesity and can improve mental health, quality of life, and well-being. Yet, much of the world is becoming less active. As countries develop economically, levels of inactivity increase. In some countries, these levels can be as high as 70%, due to changing transport patterns, increased use of technology, cultural values, and urbanization.
Working in partnerships, WHO supports countries to implement a whole-of-community approach to increasing levels of physical activity in people of all ages and abilities. Global, regional, and national coordination and capacity will be strengthened to respond to needs for technical support, innovation, and guidance.