Paul Poulton considers the need for personal fitness and healthy eating

Paul Poulton

Young people are being targeted by Governments around the world, because it is thought teenagers lead a sedentary lifestyle sitting in front of computer screens and game consoles or hanging around on street corners texting each other. The object of the campaigns is to get youths moving. In the UK we have the Change 4 Life initiative, which has a three-pronged simple message of Eat Well, Move More, Live Longer.

It's good that our leaders are interested in improving our health, but I'm not sure that we have the correct image of young people. When I lived at home with my parents I had the opposite problem, I couldn't keep still. Mom used to say I had St Vitus' Dancing sickness. At the time I wasn't quite sure what this malady was, but I have since found out that it's a mania which affected men, women, and children mainly in Europe and involved groups of people, sometimes thousands at a time, who danced until they collapsed from exhaustion. It sounds just like a warehouse rave until we realise that it occurred between the 14th and 17th centuries. I quite like the idea of dancing my way through life, but my mother said I had the dancing condition like it was a bad thing, and although my parents weren't impressed with my inability to remain still I'm sure the World Health Organisation would be. Dancing, running, cycling and generally being active plus eating healthily are key components of living a long life. Even victims of a heart attack do not escape - in many cases doctors will recommend that heart attack survivors get more physical activity than they did prior to their attack. If I am correct, treatment for heart conditions not too long ago consisted of rest and more rest; but times have changed and people seem to have realised that God made six days for us to work by the sweat of our brow and only one day for resting. Medical advice changes throughout human history, of course, but usually for the good.

The phrase 'childhood obesity' has been in the news for the last few years and it's a shame that the younger element of society is singled out. It may be because news agencies go for the shock value of the phrase, yet there are other areas of society that perhaps should be setting an example to young people and are failing to do so. The New York Times reported that church leaders now suffer from obesity, hypertension and depression at rates higher than most groups in society. Churches are usually prepared to pray for sick people, but haven't always taken a lead in preventative healthcare. There have been plenty of sermons on getting spiritually fit, (which of course is excellent advice), but not too many on looking after our bodies, which God made just as much as our soul and spirit. However change is in the air. It's encouraging to see that a group called 'Vicar's Vitality' has been launched in response to the New York Times report; a campaign designed to support local church leaders by giving them easy access to fitness facilities. Other schemes are also under way. In the church I go to we have an official running club that is an England Athletics Affiliated Club with a number of qualified leaders. People on the whole these days are aware that we need to exercise and eat sensibly and with advances in medical know-how people are living longer. One particular church leader who bucks the unfit pastor trend is Reg Dean (from Derbyshire UK) he recently celebrated his 110th birthday. Reg decided to take early retirement when he was 80 years old. He is reputed to still be sharp mentally; someone asked him how it felt to be 110 and he replied by saying, "One year older than 109".

It is wise for us to listen to what health organisations tell us. Wisdom calls out, "Through me your days will be many and years will be added to your life". It's true, it says so in the Bible, in fact the Bible says there will come a time when someone who fails to reach the age of 100 will be thought of as accursed. Maybe those days are nearer to us than we realise.