Risk factors are attributes, exposures, or characteristics of an individual that increases his or her likelihood of developing an injury or a disease. Individual awareness of risk factors is important in reducing the likelihood of having a disease or a condition and also important in the management and treatment of various diseases and conditions.
Hypokinetic diseases are diseases that are caused by sedentary lifestyle. This is lifestyle characterised by insufficient activity and lack of regular exercise (Brown, Thomas, and Kotecki 26). Research show that physical activity and fitness are of importance in preventing and treating these diseases hence methods of health and wellness promotion. Hypokinetic diseases include diabetes, cancer, heart attack, diabetes, and stroke. Other hypokinetic conditions include back pain and obesity.
Heart attack is the most prevalent cardiovascular diseases. It occurs when the blood supply to the heart is cut off. Because of this, some parts of the heart muscles can die. One of the risk factors in heart attack is a lack of physical activity. Research has established that physical activity leads to a reduction in the risk of heart attack (Hoffman 87). This is because regular exercise improves coronary circulation. In addition, the heart of a person with a sedentary lifestyle is susceptible to stress and emotional storm that may enhance heart attack. Regular exercise has also proven to be the most effective means of rehabilitating an individual with coronary heart disease or one who has had a heart attack.
Apart from heart attack, lack of physical activity has been associated with other cardiovascular diseases. An example is stroke. Stroke occurs as a result of blockage of blood supply to the brain. This is as a result of a blood clot occurring in any of the arteries that carry blood to the brain. It can also occur when the arteries in the brain burst. Regular physical activity has however been found to reduce the risk of stroke. Physical activity has been found also to reduce the risk of other cardiovascular conditions such as hypertension and peripheral vascular diseases (Wilkins 338)
Diabetes is another hypokinetic condition related to sedentary lifestyle. It occurs when the body is unable to regulate blood sugar level. As such, an individual with this condition has very high blood sugar level. There are two types of diabetes: type-I and type- II. Type I is not hypokinetic but caused by the inability of the body to produce insulin needed to regulate blood sugar levels. However, type II diabetes is hypokinetic as people who lack physical exercise have a higher likelihood of having it. Highly active people are more likely to have normal blood sugar level. Moreover, physical activity helps in reducing over-fatness, a risk factor in type II diabetes.
Physical inactivity has been found to contribute largely to obesity. Obesity is a condition characterised by a high percentage of body fat. Too much body fats is a precursor to other conditions such as heart attack and obesity. Physical activity can reduce the prevalence of obesity.
Lastly, inactivity has been associated with osteoporosis. This is a condition that arises when the bone structure deteriorates, and the bones become weak. It is mostly common in older generation but has also surfaced in youths as a hypokinetic condition. Compared to individuals with a sedentary lifestyle, those who do regular exercise exhibit stronger bones hence have a lower risk of developing this condition.
Works cited
Brown, Kelli McCormack, David Q. Thomas, and Jerome Edward Kotecki. Physical Activity and Health: An Interactive Approach. Jones & Bartlett Learning, 2002. Print.
Hoffman, Shirl J. Introduction to Kinesiology: Studying Physical Activity. Human Kinetics, 2013. Print.
Wilkins, Lippincott Williams &. Pathophysiology: A 2-in-1 Reference for Nurses. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2005. Print.
