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Japanese National Physical Activity and Health Promotion Guidelines

Toshiki Ohta, Izumi Tabata, and Yumiko Mochizuki

Edited by Wojtek J. Chodzko-Zajko

The Japanese National Physical Activity and Health Promotion Guidelines were compiled by the Ministry of Health and Welfare of Japan. A broad definition of physical activity was adopted in this report. Objectives of physical activity were (a) maintaining and promoting health, (b) preventing and treating disease, (c) reducing stress, (d) promoting development in childhood, (e) maintaining and improving independence in older people, (f) managing symptoms associated with menopause, and (g) promoting general psychological well-being.

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Japanese National Physical Activity and Health Promotion Guidelines

Toshiki Ohta, Izumi Tabata, and Yumiko Mochizuki

Edited by Wojtek J. Chodzko-Zajko

The Japanese National Physical Activity and Health Promotion Guidelines were compiled by the Ministry of Health and Welfare of Japan. A broad definition of physical activity was adopted in this report. Objectives of physical activity were (a) maintaining and promoting health, (b) preventing and treating disease, (c) reducing stress, (d) promoting development in childhood, (e) maintaining and improving independence in older people, (f) managing symptoms associated with menopause, and (g) promoting general psychological well-being.

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Physical Activity and Cardiovascular Health in Aging Women: A Health-Promotion Perspective

Jo-Ann V. Sawatzky and Barbara J. Naimark

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in women. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between physical activity and other determinants of cardiovascular health in aging women from a health-promotion perspective. Participants (N = 206) completed a cardiovascular health-promotion profile, and various physical measures were recorded. The findings suggest that physically active aging women, especially those who exercise regularly or vigorously, have healthier cardiovascular profiles than do their less active counterparts. They were more likely to be members of a health and fitness facility, to be younger, and have higher socioeconomic status. Their diets were healthier, and their perception of their health status was more positive. Physical measures of cardiovascular health also decreased with increased levels of activity (p < .05). These findings validate physical activity promotion as an effective strategy to ameliorate the cardiovascular health profile of aging women. The study also lends support for population-based cardiovascular health-promotion strategies.

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From Treatment to Health Enhancement: Psychosocial Considerations in the Exercise Components of Health Promotion Programs

Larry L. Fahlberg and Lauri A. Fahlberg

Health enhancement has been associated with the development of empowerment and self-responsibility among program participants. However, if not well planned and implemented, health promotion programs may be at odds with the development of these philosophical objectives. In fact there has been a recognition that traditional treatment approaches may be ineffective for enhancing health. This inadequacy currently seems apparent in the exercise and/or fitness component of programs. Lack of emphasis on enhancement processes may be exemplified by symptoms such as program dependency among participants. Therefore, if empowerment and self-responsibility are philosophical objectives of a program, methods must be congruent with this philosophy.

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Active Living in the Trucking Sector: Environmental Barriers and Health Promotion Strategies

Yorghos Apostolopoulos, Mona M. Shattell, Sevil Sönmez, Robert Strack, Lauren Haldeman, and Victoria Jones

Background:

As one of the most underserved segments of the U.S. labor force, truck drivers have been associated with a series of morbid conditions intimately linked to their occupational milieux, their mostly unhealthful nutritional intake and sedentary lifestyles, and their resulting excess weight-gain.

Methods:

This paper reports data from a baseline assessment of 25 trucking work settings located around interstate highways I-40 and I-85 in North Carolina. It examines how the environmental attributes of these work settings influence the physical and recreational activity behaviors of truckers, compares findings with those from other occupational environments, and brings to the fore a new health promotion paradigm for trucking worksites.

Results:

Findings support growing empirical and anecdotal evidence that trucking work settings remain not only active-living deserts, but overall unhealthful places. A scan of physical, social, and information environments within trucking worksites as well as physical environments of surrounding communities reveal only meager opportunities for physical and recreational activity for truckers.

Conclusion:

This paper places the highly underserved population of truckers firmly within the discourse of worksite health promotion, and calls for comprehensive multistakeholder wellness strategies that address a multitude of risk factors linked to the occupational context.

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Improving Student Learning and Professional Preparation in Health Promotion Utilizing Partnerships

Jeremy T. Barnes and Thomas J. Pujol

Partnerships have been developed between faculty in the Department of Health, Human Performance and Recreation at Southeast Missouri State University and professionals from several organizations. These include on-campus partnerships with other academic departments, Recreation Services, Counseling and Disability Services, and a wide variety of off-campus partnerships including those with hospitals, fitness centers, county health departments, local coalitions, not-for-profits, schools K–12, and local corporations. All of these partnerships have resulted in substantial experiential learning opportunities for the students in the BS in Health Management: Health Promotion Option Program. Some of the skills students have acquired include improved written and oral communication skills, public speaking, program planning, program implementation, data collection, program evaluation, exercise testing, and prescription and health screening. The experiential learning activities students completed in two of the required classes in the major are described in this article.

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Responses to Walking-Speed Instructions: Implications for Health Promotion for Older Adults

Claire F. Fitzsimons, Carolyn A. Greig, David H. Saunders, Susan J. Lewis, Susan D. Shenkin, Cynthia Lavery, and Archie Young

This study examined the effect of age on descriptive walking-speed instructions commonly used in health promotion. Participants were 9 young (20–23 years) and 9 older (75–83 years) women. Oxygen uptake and walking speed were measured in response to descriptive walking instructions (“slow,” “comfortable,” “brisk,” and “fast”). Although the older women walked ≈20% slower in response to all walking instructions and with significantly lower oxygen costs for brisk and fast, the intensity of the exercise represented a much greater percentage of VO2max and showed greater interindividual variation. When asked to walk at a brisk pace, the older women averaged 67% VO2max (SD 20.6), whereas the young women averaged only 45% VO2max (SD 4.5). With older people, brisk might elicit an exercise intensity unnecessarily high for physiological benefit and that might compromise safety and adherence, which emphasizes the need for validation of carefully worded exercise and training guidance for older adults.

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Predictors of Exercise in Midline and Older Women Based on the Health Promotion Model

Marlene Adams and Susan McCrone

The primary objective of this study was to explore selected variables from the Health Promotion Model to determine their impact on the exercise behavior of women ages 40 and older. The secondary objective was to compare variables in women who exercise and those who do not. A convenience sample of 893 female employees from one large university in the mid-Atlantic region and its surrounding community participated. Participants completed a brief demographic questionnaire and the Exercise Benefits and Barriers Scale (EBBS). Walking was the preferred form of exercise for 50.1 % of women. Those who preferred walking perceived fewer benefits and barriers to exercising. Significant predictors of engagement in the preferred form of exercise were perceived benefits, perceived barriers, and walking as a

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A Retrospective Evaluation of a Community-Based Physical Activity Health Promotion Program

Catherine E. Draper, Tracy L. Kolbe-Alexander, and Estelle V. Lambert

Background:

The Community Health Intervention Programmes (CHIPs) is a physical activity-based health promotion program operating in disadvantaged communities in the Western Cape, South Africa with primary school learners, adults and senior adults. Program growth, anecdotal evidence and experience of those involved suggest the program has been positively received by communities. The aim of this study was to conduct a qualitative, retrospective process evaluation concerning both factors associated with successful implementation of the programs, and implementation challenges.

Methods:

‘Success’ was defined in consultation with CHIPs staff and stakeholders. Data were gathered through naturalistic observation, structured interviews and focus groups (n = 104), and open-ended questionnaires (n = 81). The sample included CHIPs staff and stakeholders, program members and leaders.

Results:

Factors contributing to the program’s success include: focus on combining social development and exercise science, community development model, scientifically sound program content, appropriate activities, intrapersonal and interpersonal factors, program leadership, encouraging staff, and various contextual factors.

Conclusions:

The findings confirm that CHIPs presents a model of sustainable implementation of physical activity in disadvantaged communities, and that it positively impacts the quality of life, perceptions of the role of physical activity in health, and personal responsibility for health of those involved in its programs.

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Physical Activity Prevalence and Correlates Among New Zealand Older Adults

Hayley Guiney, Michael Keall, and Liana Machado

). Thus, there is a need for health promotion initiatives aimed at increasing physical activity levels in that age group. Research on the predictors and correlates of physical activity in older adults can aid the effective design of such initiatives by helping to identify which segments of the older adult