A new report from WHO/Europe, entitled “Health-enhancing physical activity in the European Union, 2024”* [L’activité physique favorable à la santé dans l’Union européenne 2024] presents the most recent data on physical activity in the European Union (EU), and reports on progress made towards integrating health-promoting physical activity into people’s lives.
Main findings
The report reveals a notable improvement in the implementation of physical activity policies in the EU between 2015 and 2024.
The EU monitoring framework on healthy physical activity, established to monitor the application of EU guidelines in this area, shows that the implementation of policies through 23 indicators representing a overall national approach to promoting physical activity increased from 64.7% in 2015 to 81.8% in 2024. This progress demonstrates a growing global commitment to promoting physical activity as a essential component of public health.
Despite intensified policy development and implementation, the latest available data from WHO on physical activity levels reveal that the global prevalence of insufficient physical activity was 31. 3% in 2022, an increase from 23.4% in 2000. If these trends are confirmed, the objective of the Global Action Plan to Promote Physical Activity 2018-2030, namely a reduction of 15% levels of physical inactivity, will not be achieved in most countries.
“We see that more and more EU countries are adopting evidence-based policies to promote physical activity, for example by implementing whole-school physical activity programs, and encouraging active travel that can to address inequalities,” explained Dr Kremlin Wickramasinghe, WHO/Europe regional advisor on nutrition, physical activity and obesity.
Increased physical activity: the benefits
Physical activity is essential for the prevention of noncommunicable diseases which represent the greatest threat to health in the WHO European Region, contributing to 90% of total mortality.
Increasing physical activity to minimum recommended levels (150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week) would prevent 11.5 million new cases of non-communicable diseases in the EU by 2050, including 3.8 million cases of cardiovascular disease, 3.5 million cases of depression, nearly 1 million cases of type 2 diabetes and more than 400,000 cases of various cancers.
The economic benefits of increased physical activity go beyond the direct savings in the health care sector estimated at €8 billion per year. Countries that invest in promoting physical activity can indeed expect a significant return on investment because increasing levels of physical activity leads to a more productive and healthier workforce, and guarantee a more fulfilled existence for all.
Next steps
The report includes a summary of national policies and action plans to promote physical activity in the EU. It underlines the importance of adopting multi-sectoral approaches, notably involving the fields of health, education, sport, town planning and transport.
The collaboration between the “Sport” unit of the European Commission and WHO/Europe has made it possible to establish a support mechanism for Member States and HEPA Europe (European Network for the Promotion of Healthy Physical Activity ). To build on progress and address existing challenges, the report recommends several key actions:
- improve national programs and financing – strengthen coordination mechanisms and national financing in all sectors, including health, education, sport, urban planning and transport;
- promote inclusion policies – implement policies providing opportunities for daily physical activity to different population groups, including children, seniors and people with disabilities;
- improve data collection and monitoring – establish systems for tracking and monitoring physical activity levels, and use consistent methodologies to enable accurate tracking of trends and comparisons between countries;
- promoting health through sport – working to strengthen the link between the sport and health sectors, and using tools developed by WHO to help sports federations and sports clubs integrate health promotion in their activities.
The WHO/Europe report highlights the need for increased investment and political commitment to achieve global health goals by 2030, including UN Sustainable Development Goal 3.4, which is to reduce premature mortality from non-communicable diseases by a third.
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* This document was produced with the financial assistance of the European Commission. The opinions expressed herein do not in any way reflect the official opinion of the European Union.
