The link for the online version of the Institute of Medicine Report is http://www.nap.edu/books/0309085373/html/
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The experts who tell Americans what vitamins they need issued their first-ever guidelines on Thursday on fat, protein and carbohydrate consumption -- and also recommended much more exercise.

North Americans should try to get at least an hour of moderate exercise such as brisk walking every day, the Institute of Medicine ( news - web sites) panel recommended -- doubling the surgeon-general's 1996 target of half an hour. [Yahoo]

The most noteworthy finding appears to be that the report recommends an hour a day of exercise, rather than a half hour, to stay healthy. The authors acknowledge, however, that for many people with a modern sedentary lifestyle, this goal may seem hard to meet. They insist, however, that it is necessary to good health.

Reuters also reports that the authors of the study found that some fat is necessary to a healthy diet, but there is absolutely no redeeming value to trans or saturated fat.

One notion this report clearly undercuts is the idea that a healthy lifestyle is simply a matter of exercising choice and willpower. Citizens of a developed country such as the United States must usually perform large amounts of sedentary work in which long hours and efficiency are at a premium. There is little time left over for meals, meal preparation or exercise, and there are few ways to obtain prepared meals that are healthy. Most Americans do not live this way because they wish to be unhealthy, but because it is the only way that they know to support themselves and their families. It requires both imagination and determination (or independent means) to make choices that cut against the grain of modern (post) industrial society and allow people to pursue healthy activities and healthy diets. It is obviously not impossible, but it requires rejecting many of the assumptions that our society takes for granted. If more than a determined few Americans are to lead healthy lives, we need to change not only ourselves but also our society.

The full report is available from http://www.nap.edu

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