Sport medicine lifestyle researchers #TeamUP against diabetes, heart disease and depression

More than half of South Africans do not play sports or exercise regularly. A new University of Pretoria (UP) Institute will address the problem by supporting healthy, active lifestyles through research.

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs), or diseases of lifestyle, are taking a greater toll than ever on human health

Globalisation and industrialised food systems have put citizens of developing countries at risk of obesity, heart disease and other metabolic disorders. In South Africa, NCDs are rapidly becoming themost common cause of death, with the heaviest burden falling on low- and middle-income populations.

Tobacco use, an unhealthy diet, insufficient physical activity and the harmful use of alcohol are the behavioural risk factors that contribute most to NCD prevalence; all four are associated with economic transition, rapid urbanisation and 21st-century living conditions for poor and middle-income communities. In particular, a lack of physical activity is pervasive among South Africans and is the major contributor to NCD prevalence.

At the University of Pretoria (UP), there are multiple departments, researchers and health practitioners working in the broad area of sport and exercise medicine, but there has been no single institute coordinating research and other activities in this area. With better direction and coordination, UP could make a major impact in the areas of sports, exercise and lifestyle research.