The European Public Health Week took place from 16 to the 22 May 2022. Each day focused on a new topic, such as climate change, mental health, or vaccination. Organisations from all over Europe were welcome to submit events or campaigns linked to these topics, with the aim of drawing attention to public health issues.
The theme of the first day was ‘a healthy and health literate youth’, which included physical activity as one of its subtopics. For this occasion, EuropeActive organized a social media campaign aimed at raising awareness of the many health benefits of physical activity, combining a list of publications on digital, mental health and youth alongside a live discussion on Twitter. This live chat enabled individuals to share information on how active they are and what is potentially preventing them from being as active as they would hope for. Lack of infrastructure or knowledge was mentioned quite often, with people explaining that biking infrastructures, for instance, can be lacking in some cities.
This day was the perfect occasion to emphasise that exercising regularly not only has positive health effects, as it helps to prevent some cancers and improves children’s cognitive development, but it can also contribute to tackling climate change. Indeed, active mobility helps to alleviate pollution as people choose to walk or cycle rather than taking the car in their daily lives. Mitigating the effects of pollution also helps public health as city pollution is responsible for many diseases. This day was therefore the opportunity to highlight that being active has a positive impact on people’s well-being on many levels.