| The mid-1990s saw a revolution in public health recommendations for physical activity. Previous recommendations had focused on traditional structured exercise, with an emphasis on relatively high intensity activities. Reports in 1995 and 1996 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/American College of Sports Medicine, American Heart Association, National Institutes of Health, and the U.S. Surgeon General presented recommendations that focused on accumulating at least 30 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity on most days of the week. These newer recommendations have had a major effect on public health policy on physical activity, not only in the U.S., but around the world. In addition, the recommendations have stimulated much additional research on how various patterns, types, intensities, and amounts of activity influence a wide variety of health outcomes. Recent data on physical activity and health will be presented.
Steven N. Blair is President and CEO of The Cooper Institute in Dallas. He is an Adjunct Professor in the Schools of Public Health at the University of South Carolina and the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston; the College of Education Academy for Research and Development at the University of North Texas; and the College of Education at the University of Houston. He also is a Benjamin Meaker Fellow at the University of Bristol, England. Dr. Blair is a Fellow in the American College of Epidemiology, Society for Behavioral Medicine, American College of Sports Medicine, American Heart Association, and American Academy of Kinesiology and Physical Education; and was elected to membership in the American Epidemiological Society.
Dr. Blair was the first president of the National Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity, and is a past-president of the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Academy of Kinesiology and Physical Education. Dr. Blair is the recipient of three honorary doctoral degrees--Doctor Honoris Causa degree from the Free University of Brussels, Belgium; Doctor of Health Science degree from Lander University, U.S.; and Doctor of Science Honoris Causa, University of Bristol, UK. He has received awards from many professional associations, holds a prestigious MERIT Award from the National Institutes of Health, and is one of the few individuals outside the U.S. Public Health Service to be awarded the Surgeon General's Medallion. He has delivered lectures to medical, scientific, and lay groups in 48 states and 30 countries. His research focuses on the associations between lifestyle and health, with a specific emphasis on exercise, physical fitness, body composition, and chronic disease. He has published over 350 papers and chapters in the scientific literature, and was the Senior Scientific Editor for the U.S. Surgeon General's Report on Physical Activity and Health. |