BEIJING, June 11 (Xinhua) -- China has developed practices to promote physical activity that are worth promoting internationally, particularly in developing countries.
That's the view of World Health Organization (WHO) Representative to China Martin Taylor, who cited the country's progress in creating an environment that makes exercise more accessible.
"China is very well-placed with a good foundation," Taylor said after signing a letter of intent with the China Institute of Sport Science. He pointed to efforts ranging from national policy initiatives to public space development and community-level integration of sport and health services.
Physical inactivity remains a major global public health challenge. According to WHO data, 31 percent of adults worldwide, or about 1.8 billion people, do not meet recommended levels of physical activity, while the figure rises to 80 percent among adolescents.
Each year, about 830,000 deaths from noncommunicable diseases are linked to insufficient physical activity.
"First of all, the importance of the leadership of the country places on health and sport is really important," Taylor said. "What we see is the commitment in the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development, putting people at the center and health at the center, and recognizing sport as an important part of that."
He also praised China's investment in public spaces.
"When you see now around many cities and towns in China, you see parks with places to go running, by the rivers and canals, places for people to walk and to run and to dance, outdoor gyms that people can go to," he said. "The investment in outdoor spaces, in parks and in the walkways beside the rivers provides a wonderful opportunity for people to exercise."
Taylor cited Beijing's Olympic Forest Park as an example.
"Here, you have a wonderful space, which is full every weekend of people exercising, not just walking and running, but there's even a rock climbing facility there," he said.
He also highlighted the widespread availability of shared bicycles in Chinese cities, saying they have made cycling an accessible form of exercise for millions.
"Many people now can go to work by taking a shared bicycle. 20 years ago, that was impossible," Taylor said.
At the community level, he praised efforts to integrate sport and health services.
"We see, for example, the integration of sport and health at the community level, using health facilities, using sports centers to integrate, allow people to get an understanding of their health from physicians, then go over to sports, to be able to do the kinds of sports or physical activity that they need to help with their conditions," he said. "These kinds of initiatives are wonderful."
"If you have 20 or 30 minutes a day to spend on social media, you have the same amount of time to spend doing exercise," he added. "Sport is not only healthy, it is also fun." ■
