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By Matthew Rees

Food and Health Fact #145: Rising inactivity among Americans

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More than 25 percent of American adults report participating in no physical activities and no exercise outside of their job, according to a recent study published by the CDC. (The inactivity rate is up from 15 percent just two years ago.) The study broke down the levels of activity by state (Colorado had the lowest level of inactivity; Mississippi the highest), as well as race and ethnicity.

Asian adults had the lowest prevalence of physical inactivity outside of work (20.1 percent) followed by non-Hispanic Whites (23 percent), non-Hispanic American Indians/Alaska Natives (29.1 percent), non-Hispanic Blacks (30 percent), and Hispanics (32.1 percent). Another recent study showed that American adults took 1,118 fewer steps each day in 2017 than in 1995, while decline among adolescents was 2,278 steps.

Is the low level of physical activity a major contributor to obesity? Not necessarily, according to several studies (the most recent being here). Exercise does bring a wide range of benefits, including better brain health and reducing the risk of heart disease, stroke, and cancer, while also lowering blood pressure and improving cholesterol levels. But exercise is not typically associated with weight loss.

The reason why, according to a New York Times article, is “an open question,” while adding that, “Scientists studying the issue agree that most of us compensate for the calories lost to exercise by eating more, moving less, or both. Our resting metabolic rates may also decline if we start to lose pounds. All of this shifts us back toward positive energy balance, otherwise known as weight gain.”

There’s a related issue that deserves further study: Are Americans moving less because their obesity prevents them from doing so?