Overall , the current literature supports clearly the dose-response relationship between physical activity and the seven chronic conditions identified .
Moreover , higher levels of physical activity reduce the risk for premature all-cause mortality .
The current Canadian guidelines appear to be appropriate to reduce the risk for the seven chronic conditions identified above and all-cause mortality
This systematic review examines critically the scientific basis for Canada 's Physical Activity Guide for Healthy Active Living for adults .
Particular reference is given to the dose-response relationship between physical activity and premature all-cause mortality and seven chronic diseases ( cardiovascular disease , stroke , hypertension , colon cancer , breast cancer , type 2 diabetes ( diabetes mellitus ) and osteoporosis ) .
The strength of the relationship between physical activity and specific health outcomes is evaluated critically .
Body mass index, physical inactivity and low level of physical fitness as determinants of all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality—16 y follow-up of middle-aged and elderly men and women
OBJECTIVE : To investigate the independent associations and the possible interaction of  body mass index ( BMI ) , leisure time physical activity ( LTPA ) and perceived physical fitness and functional capability with the risk of mortality . DESIGN : Prospect i ve 16 y follow-up study .SUBJECTS : A regionally representative cohort of 35–63 -y-old Finnish men ( n=1090 ) and women ( n=1122 ) . MEASUREMENTS : All-cause , cardiovascular disease ( CVD ) and coronary heart disease ( CHD ) mortality were derived from the national census data until the end of September 1996 while the initial levels of BMI , LTPA , physical fitness and function were determined from self-administered question naires . RESULTS : After adjustment for age , marital and employment status , perceived health status , smoking and alcohol consumption , the Cox proportional hazards model showed that BMI was not associated with the risk of death among the men or the women . Compared with the most active subjects the men and women with no weekly vigorous activity had relative risks of 1.61 ( 95 % confidence interval , CI , 0.98–2.64 ) and 4.68 ( 95 % CI , 1.41–15.57 ) , respectively , for CVD mortality , and for the men there was a relative risk of 1.66 ( 95 % CI , 0.92–2.99 ) for CHD mortality . When compared with the men who perceived their fitness as better than their age-mates , the men with the ‘ worse ’ assessment had a relative risk of 3.29 ( 95 % CI , 1.80–6.02 ) for all-cause mortality and 4.37 ( 95 % CI , 1.80–10.6 ) for CVD mortality . Men with at least some difficulty in walking a distance of 2 km had a relative risk of 1.62 ( 95 % CI , 1.05–2.50 ) for all-cause mortality when compared with those who had no functional difficulties . In addition , in the comparison with subjects with no functional difficulties , the men and women who had some difficulty climbing several flights of stairs had relative risks of 1.47 ( 95 % CI , 0.97–2.23 ) and 2.39 ( 95 % CI , 1.25–4.60 ) for all-cause mortality , respectively . For CVD mortality the relative risks were 1.85 ( 95 % CI , 1.04–3.30 ) and 3.38 ( 1.22–9.41 ) , respectively . CONCLUSIONS : Although BMI did not prove to be an independent risk factor for mortality from CVD , CHD or from all causes combined , perceived physical fitness and functional capability did . An increase in LTPA seems to have a similar beneficial effect on the mortality risk of obese and nonobese men and women , and the effect also seems to be similar for fit and unfit subjects
Overall , the current literature supports clearly the dose-response relationship between physical activity and the seven chronic conditions identified .
Moreover , higher levels of physical activity reduce the risk for premature all-cause mortality .
The current Canadian guidelines appear to be appropriate to reduce the risk for the seven chronic conditions identified above and all-cause mortality
This systematic review examines critically the scientific basis for Canada 's Physical Activity Guide for Healthy Active Living for adults .
Particular reference is given to the dose-response relationship between physical activity and premature all-cause mortality and seven chronic diseases ( cardiovascular disease , stroke , hypertension , colon cancer , breast cancer , type 2 diabetes ( diabetes mellitus ) and osteoporosis ) .
The strength of the relationship between physical activity and specific health outcomes is evaluated critically .