The aim of this review was to discuss the evidence on the association between physical activity, fitness and health and to discuss the specific favourable effects of physical activity on the traditional and novel cardiovascular risk factors. It has been well established that physical activity is inversely associated to all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. Among the major risk factors for cardiovascular disease, hypertension is the most common. Significant reductions in blood pressure after aerobic exercise programs of mild to moderate intensity have been a consistent finding of many well-controlled studies. Physical activity also has strong beneficial effects on glucose uptake and insulin sensitivity and therefore delays or stops the development of type 2 diabetes as well as reduces the risk of mortality in diabetics. Moreover, aerobic exercise produces favourable and independent alterations of blood lipids and lipoproteins in both normolipidemic and dyslipidemic individuals. The most consistent results have been observed for increases in HDL cholesterol. One of the most important causes of obesity is physical inactivity and recent trials have shown that weight reduction achieved by physical activity is associated with reduced estimated risk of cardiovascular disease. Regular, sustained exercise has been shown to suppress inflammation and thrombosis and improve endothelial function. Despite all these findings concerning beneficial effects of physical activity, the rise in sedentary lifestyle continues to grow around the world. Only a small percentage of people in the Western world perform even the minimal amount of recommended exercise. It is therefore of very high importance that health professionals and experts in the field increase their efforts to convince policy makers to invest in the implementation of physical activity programs and in the promotion of regular physical activity.
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