TY - JOUR T1 - Actively tackling inactivity JF - British Journal of General Practice JO - Br J Gen Pract SP - 414 LP - 415 DO - 10.3399/bjgp22X720497 VL - 72 IS - 722 AU - Steve Haake AU - Simon Tobin Y1 - 2022/09/01 UR - http://bjgp.org/content/72/722/414.abstract N2 - Environments in the UK have been designed to make our lives physically easier: cars, trains, lifts, washing machines — even the humble remote control. It’s no surprise then that around 4 out of 10 of us are inactive.1 While many people may know that physical activity is good for them, they struggle to do any. And, while the phrase ‘5-a-day’ for the consumption of fruit and veg is well known, there’s no equivalent for physical activity. Perhaps that’s why only between 8% and 18% of people in the UK were able to recall that the Chief Medical Officers’ guidance is at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week.2–4 GPs faired marginally better: just 20% could recall the guidance.5The consequences of inactivity in our population are well known: high levels of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, and poor mental health. These are self-evident from Fingertips, the public health statistics gateway for general practices in England. Consider, for instance, the under 75 mortality rate from preventable cardiovascular diseases. According to Fingertips, if we look at towns across the country, the mortality rate correlates linearly with inactivity with a correlation coefficient of r = 0.67 (moderately strong).6 If inactivity increases in a town, so do preventable deaths. Given all the other determinants of health — alcohol, diet, drugs, access to health care, education, employment, environment, and … ER -