Contact: Kenneth Billings
STARKVILLE, Miss.--Mississippi State and the City of Starkville will announce Friday [April 16] the launch of a local push to promote physical activity and healthy lifestyles among all members of the university and municipal communities.
At 10 a.m. on the south steps of Lee Hall, MSU President Mark Keenum and Starkville Mayor Parker Wiseman will sign a joint proclamation formally designating May as Physical Activity Month.
The 31-day period will be declared a time for campus and city residents to begin incorporating more physical activities into their lives. Participants also will be encouraged to contact their physician regarding the best program for their specific healthcare regimens.
"Exercise and physical activity are keys to living a long and healthy life," Keenum said. "I hope we can engage Mississippi State faculty, staff, students, as well as members of the community, to join in this initiative to highlight the many benefits of physical fitness."
Physical inactivity has been recognized as a major public health problem that contributes to a variety of chronic diseases and health complications, including obesity, heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, and cancer, among others. In addition to improving a patient's overall health, increased physical activity has proved effective in the treatment and prevention of chronic diseases, medical officials long have pointed out.
"No matter how old, an increase in physical activity and exercise will increase longevity," said Dr. Bob Collins, the university's health services director.
"There are few chronic diseases that cannot be improved by a regular exercise program," the veteran physician observed. "While diabetes, heart disease and hypertension are the ones most often mentioned, arthritis, obesity, anxiety, and depression are all improved with a regular exercise program."
Also as part of Physical Activity Month, Starkville will be competing for "Healthiest Town in Mississippi," an award established and sponsored by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation to recognize communities that are working to promote health.
Additionally, the Healthy Starkville Committee has been established. Members include government policymakers, educators, researchers, students, and business owners, as well as representatives of faith-based organizations, and parks and recreation and medical and related communities.
The Friday proclamation represents a continuation of the university's Exercise is Medicine program begun last September.
Organized by the American College of Sports Medicine and American Medical Association, EIM is an ongoing national initiative. Among other aspects, physicians and nurse practitioners at MSU and other universities and colleges are prescribing exercise to interested faculty, staff and students by referring them to facilities such as the Sanderson Center for evaluations and personal exercise programs.
By tracking individual exercise habits in the same manner as drug treatments, the program seeks to reduce chances for developing chronic disease by maintaining healthy lifestyles through physical fitness and exercise.
Others may desire to begin exercise programs by taking advantage of videos and instructions provided via www.exerciseismedicine.org.
For more information about Mississippi State University, see http://www.msstate.edu/.