NCHS Data Brief ■ No. 86 ■ February 2012

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

National Center for Health Statistics

Key findings

Data from the National 

Health Interview Survey, 

2000, 2005, and 2010

•	 In 2010, about one in three

adults (32.4%) who had seen

a physician or other health

professional in the past 12

months had been advised to

begin or continue to do exercise

or physical activity.

•	 Between 2000 and 2010, the

percentage of adults receiving

advice to exercise increased by

about 10 percentage points.

•	 Among adults aged 85 and

over, the percentage receiving

advice to exercise nearly

doubled between 2000 (15.3%)

and 2010 (28.9%).

•	 Receiving advice to exercise

increased for adults with

hypertension, cardiovascular

disease, cancer, and diabetes.

•	 Adults who were overweight

or obese had the largest

percentage point increases over

the decade 2000–2010 in being

advised to exercise.

Trends in Adults Receiving a Recommendation for 

Exercise or Other Physical Activity From a Physician or 

Other Health Professional 

Patricia M. Barnes, M.A., and Charlotte A. Schoenborn, M.P.H.

Research points to the benefits of physical activity for reducing the risk of

chronic health conditions (1–4). Engaging in regular physical activity can

reduce medication dependence, help maintain functional independence, and

improve the quality of life for older adults (5,6). Physicians and other health

professionals can be influential sources of health information, and exercise

counseling by primary care physicians has been shown to increase patients’

participation in physical activity (6–9). This report examines trends in the

prevalence of U.S. adults receiving a physician’s or other health professional’s

advice to exercise or perform other physical activity among adults who had

seen a health professional in the past 12 months.

Keywords: doctor’s advice • prevention • National Health Interview Survey

Are adults being advised by their physician to exercise?

•	 In 2010, about one in three adults who had seen a physician or other

health professional in the past year had been advised to begin or continue

to do exercise or physical activity (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Percentage of adults aged 18 and over whose physician or other health professional 

recommended exercise or physical activity, by sex and year: United States, 2000, 2005, and 2010

NOTES: Denominator is adults aged 18 and over who had seen a physician or other health professional in the past 12 months.

Age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. standard population. Access data table for Figure 1 at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/

db86_tables.pdf#1.

SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Health Interview Survey.

2000 2005 2010

Percent

0

10

20

30

40

Total Men Women

22.6

29.4

32.4

21.0

27.1

30.3

23.9

31.2

34.1
NCHS Data Brief ■ No. 86 ■ February 2012

■  2  ■

•	 The percentage of adults who had been advised to exercise increased from 22.6% in 2000 to

32.4% in 2010.

•	 At each time point, women were more likely than men to have been advised to exercise.

Are younger or older adults more likely to be advised by their physician to 

exercise?

•	 The percentage of adults who had been advised by their physician to exercise increased with

age from the youngest (18–24 years) through the middle (45–64 years) and upper middle

(65–74 years) age groups and then declined (Figure 2).

•	 Adults aged 18–24 had the smallest increase over the decade 2000–2010 in the percentage

receiving a recommendation to exercise (from 10.4% in 2000 to 16.1% in 2010), while

adults aged 85 and over had the largest percentage point increase (from 15.3% in 2000 to

28.9% in 2010).

Figure 2. Percentage of adults aged 18 and over whose physician or other health professional recommended exercise 

or physical activity, by age group and year: United States, 2000, 2005, and 2010

0

10

20

30

40

50

18–24 25–44 45–64 65–74 75–84 85 and over

Percent

10.4

15.016.1

20.9

25.6

28.8 28.9

38.4

41.6

29.2

38.2

41.9

21.6

29.4

32.9

15.3

21.6

28.9

NOTE: Denominator is adults aged 18 and over who had seen a physician or other health professional in the past 12 months. Access data table for Figure 2 at 

http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db86_tables.pdf#2.

SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Health Interview Survey.

2000 2005 2010

Age group (years)
NCHS Data Brief ■ No. 86 ■ February 2012

■  3  ■

Are trends in receiving a physician’s recommendation to exercise similar 

across all race/ethnicity groups?

•	 Among adults who had seen a physician or other health professional in the past year,

the percentage receiving advice to begin or continue to do exercise or physical activity

increased among all race/ethnicity groups (Figure 3).

•	 Hispanic adults had the largest percentage point increase over the decade 2000–2010 in

receiving a recommendation to exercise.

Does receiving advice to exercise vary with having selected chronic health 

conditions? 

•	 Between 2000 and 2010, receipt of advice from a physician to do exercise or physical

activity increased for adults with hypertension, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes

(Figure 4).

•	 Adults with diabetes were more likely than those with hypertension, cardiovascular disease,

or cancer to have been advised to exercise.

•	 In 2010, more than one-half of adults with diabetes were advised to exercise, compared with

just over one-third of adults with cancer.

Figure 3. Percentage of adults aged 18 and over whose physician or other health professional recommended exercise 

or physical activity, by race/ethnicity and year: United States, 2000, 2005, and 2010 Percent

NOTES: Denominator is adults aged 18 and over who had seen a physician or other health professional in the past 12 months. Age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. 

standard population. Access data table for Figure 3 at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db86_tables.pdf#3.

SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Health Interview Survey.

2000 2005 2010

0

10

20

30

40

Hispanic Non-Hispanic white Non-Hispanic black Non-Hispanic Asian

20.8

30.3

35.8

22.8

29.0

31.5

21.9

29.7

34.0

21.1

32.7 32.7
NCHS Data Brief ■ No. 86 ■ February 2012

■  4  ■

Figure 4. Percentage of adults aged 18 and over whose physician or other health professional recommended exercise 

or physical activity, by chronic health condition and year: United States, 2000, 2005, and 2010 Percent

NOTES: Denominator is adults aged 18 and over who had seen a physician or other health professional in the past 12 months. Age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. 

standard population. Access data table for Figure 4 at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db86_tables.pdf#4.

SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Health Interview Survey.

34.1

41.7

44.2

32.5

38.9 41.2

25.5

34.8 35.8

47.7

51.4

56.3

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Hypertension Cardiovascular disease Cancer Diabetes

2000 2005 2010

Does receiving a physician’s advice to exercise vary by body mass index 

(BMI)? 

•	 Adults	who	were	obese	were	about	twice	as	likely	as	healthy	weight	adults	to	have	been	

advised	by	a	physician	or	other	health	professional	to	do	exercise	or	physical	activity	

(Figure	5).

•	 The	percentage	of	adults	who	had	been	advised	to	exercise	increased	in	each	BMI	category	

between	2000	and	2010,	although	the	percentage	point	increase	was	largest	for	adults	who	

were	obese	(BMI	30.0	or	above).	

Figure 5. Percentage of adults aged 18 and over whose physician or other health professional recommended exercise 

or physical activity, by body mass index (BMI) category and year: United States, 2000, 2005, and 2010 Percent

14.3 15.0

17.3 16.3

22.5 22.6 21.9

27.6

30.5

34.8

43.2

46.9

2000 2005 2010

0

10

20

30

40

50

Underweight Healthy weight Overweight Obese
NCHS Data Brief ■ No. 86 ■ February 2012

■  5  ■

Summary

The Healthy People 2020 objectives for physical activity include two objectives for increasing

the proportion of physician office visits that include counseling or education related to exercise

(see http://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/default.aspx). Physician counseling for exercise has

not previously been tracked by the Healthy People initiative. The present report looks at this

emerging health issue from the vantage point of adults in the general population who had seen

a physician or other health professional in the past 12 months and had been advised to begin

or continue to do exercise or other physical activity. About 8 in 10 adults had seen a health

professional in the past 12 months during 2000 (80.6%), 2005 (81.2%), and 2010 (79.8%),

although estimates varied by demographic subgroups (10–12). Over time, estimates of the

percentage of adults being advised to exercise could be influenced by major changes in the

characteristics of adults seeing a health professional.

In 2010, about one in three adults (32.4%) who had seen a physician or other health professional

in the past year had been advised to exercise or do other physical activity, which reflects an

upward trend since 2000, moving in the direction of meeting Healthy People 2020 goals. In

relative terms, there has been more than a 40% increase—from 22.6% of adults in 2000 to 32.4%

in 2010.

Although increases were noted for every population and health condition group studied, these

increases were larger for some groups than others. The increase in the percentage of adults

receiving exercise advice is particularly noteworthy for the oldest age group. In 2000, 15.3% of

adults aged 85 and over had been advised to exercise; by 2010, the percentage had increased to

28.9%. Across the chronic health conditions studied, adults with diabetes were the most likely,

and those with cancer were the least likely, to have been advised by their physician to exercise.

An upward trend of 8–10 percentage points, however, was seen among adults with each of

the chronic diseases examined. Adults who were overweight or obese saw among the largest

increases over the decade in the percentage receiving a physician’s advice to exercise. The

percentage of healthy weight adults receiving exercise advice also increased over the decade, but

to a lesser extent.

Trends over the past 10 years suggest that the medical community is increasing its efforts to

recommend participation in exercise and other physical activity that research has shown to be

associated with substantial health benefits. Still, the prevalence of receiving this advice remains

well below one-half of U.S. adults and varies substantially across population subgroups.

Definitions

Body mass index: Based on respondent-reported height and weight and calculated using the

formula BMI = weight (kilograms)/height (meters)2. Categories of BMI are: underweight (BMI

less than 18.5); healthy weight (18.5 to less than 25.0); overweight (25.0 to less than 30.0); and

obese (30.0 or more).

Chronic health condition: The chronic health conditions studied were hypertension; coronary

heart disease, angina, myocardial infarction, or any other kind of heart disease or condition

(combined under “cardiovascular disease”); cancer; and diabetes. Adults were classified as having

the condition based on separate questions asking if they had ever been told by a physician or other
NCHS Data Brief ■ No. 86 ■ February 2012

■  6  ■

health professional that they had the condition. Respondents could report multiple conditions.

Hypertension is defined as having been told they had high blood pressure two or more times.

Physician or other health professional: “Physician” refers to medical doctors (MDs) and

osteopathic physicians (DOs), including general practitioners and all types of specialists (e.g.,

internists, gynecologists, obstetricians, psychiatrists, and ophthalmologists). “Other health

professional” includes physician assistants, psychologists, nurses, physical therapists, and

chiropractors. In this report, the term “physician” used alone refers to a physician or other health

professional.

Exercise advice or recommendation: Based on the question “During the past 12 months, did

a doctor or other health professional recommend that you begin or continue to do any type of

exercise or physical activity?” The question was asked of adults who had seen a physician or

other health professional in the past 12 months, which is the denominator for all percentages

shown in this report. When used alone, the term “exercise” refers to exercise or physical activity.

Data source and methods

National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) data are collected continuously throughout the year

for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics

(NCHS) by interviewers from the U.S. Census Bureau. NHIS is a household-based survey

collecting information about the health and health care of the U.S. population. Interviews are

generally conducted in respondents’ homes, although some interviews may be completed over the

telephone. The survey consists of (a) a family component, with questions asked of all members

of the family; (b) a sample adult component, which collects additional information from one

adult per family; and (c) a sample child component, which collects additional information about

one child per family. In addition, special topic supplements collect information on topics of

current public health interest in some years. The estimates presented in this report are based on

an identical question asked of persons aged 18 and over in the NHIS adult cancer supplements

in 2000, 2005, and 2010, cosponsored by the National Cancer Institute and CDC in each of these

years. (See “Definitions” for question wording.) The unweighted numbers of adults who had

seen a physician or other health professional in the past 12 months for each of these years were:

26,402 (2000); 25,607 (2005); and 21,850 (2010). For further information about NHIS, including

questionnaire content, visit the NHIS website at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhis.htm.

NHIS is designed to yield a sample representative of the civilian noninstitutionalized population

of the United States, and the present analysis used weights to produce national estimates. Data

weighting procedures are described in detail elsewhere (13). Point estimates and estimates

of corresponding variances for this analysis were calculated using SUDAAN software (14)

to account for the complex sample design of NHIS. The Taylor series linearization method

was used for variance estimation. All estimates shown in this report meet NCHS standards of

reliability (relative standard error less than or equal to 30%). Differences between percentages

were evaluated using two-sided significance tests at the 0.05 level. Terms such as “greater than”

and “less than” indicate statistically significant differences. Terms such as “similar” and “no

difference” indicate that the statistics being compared were not significantly different. Lack of

comment regarding the difference between any two statistics does not necessarily suggest that the

difference was tested and found to be not significant. Statistics shown in Figures , 3, 4, and 5	are

age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. standard population using four age groups: 18–24, 25–44, 45–64,

and 65 and over.
NCHS Data Brief ■ No. 86 ■ February 2012

■  7  ■

About the authors

The authors are with CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics. Patricia Barnes is with the

Office of Research and Methodology; Charlotte Schoenborn is with the Division of Health

Interview Statistics.

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Suggested citation

Barnes PM, Schoenborn CA. Trends in

adults receiving a recommendation for

exercise or other physical activity from

a physician or other health professional.

NCHS data brief, no 86. Hyattsville, MD:

National Center for Health Statistics. 2012.

Copyright information

All material appearing in this report is in

the public domain and may be reproduced

without permission; citation as to source;

however, is appreciated.

National Center for Health 

Statistics

Edward J. Sondik, Ph.D., Director

Jennifer H. Madans, Ph.D., Associate 

Director for Science

Office of Research and Methodology 

Nathaniel Schenker, Ph.D., Associate 

Director

Division of Health Interview Statistics

Jane F. Gentleman, Ph.D., Director