The United Nations Summit in New York last week to develop a declaration for united government action to protect against NCDs and their socioeconomic consequences focused on the effects of these chronic diseases --  such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and chronic respiratory disease -- around the world. Moore reminds us that there is much we can do to combat them right here in the U.S. The National Physical Activity Plan, he noted, lays out a vision that one day, all Americans will be physically active.  Proponents of the Plan already are hard at work on national, state, and local levels to develop policies that require comprehensive physical activity programs; identifying best practices and model interventions for the promotion of physical activity in the workplace; leveraging professional, amateur, and college athletics/sports infrastructures to enhance opportunities for physical activity in communities; seeking to improve community planning processes so they integrate, and prioritize, opportunities for bicycling and walking; encouraging the medical community to make physical activity a “vital sign” to be assessed at every patient visit; disseminating tools and resources that educate people on the importance of exercise; and more.diabetes or Leukemia, and who so desperately needs adequate medical care.

Read more of IHRSA President and CEO Joe Moore's commentary at: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/09/29/v-print/125639/commentary-fighting-noncommunicable.html