Physical inactivity, exercise and chronic diseases

Abstract

Physical inactivity is strongly related to the incidence and severity of a number of chronic diseases. Hence, physical exercise emerges as one of the most important therapeutic tool to health promotion, with the Physical Education professional being the responsible for disseminating it widely. In this manuscript, we will discuss the following questions: 1) What is the social and biological impact of physical inactivity on overall health? 2) What is the impact of physical activity on people's lives? 3) What is the role of the Physical Education professional in the promotion of health and what are the challenges that Physical Education Discipline, as a science ("lato sensu") and profession, will face in the next decades? Having in mind the role of physical inactivity upon the etiology of chronic diseases, we intend to reveal the large potential of physical exercise as a therapeutic agent.