Promoting physical activity and heart health among youths in secondary schools and at the grassroots level: The role of a National Sports Institution in Nigeria

Inactivity and low levels of physical activity are predisposing factors to non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as heart disease, diabetes mellitus, and cancer, which are showing an increase in prevalence in Sub-Saharan Africa. Physical activity levels have been found to be decreasing among youths in many countries around the world resulting in a state where youths are not found to be sufficiently active in order to safeguard their well-being and future health.

The Federal Government of Nigeria, through the National Academicals Sports Committee (NASCOM) and in collaboration with both the State and Local Government, is promoting an initiative on physical activities such as soccer in secondary schools. The overall objective is to promote physical activity and heart health among youths in secondary schools and at the grassroots level in Nigeria. The schools are required to train teams that would represent the schools in different inter-school competitions. The number of local soccer clubs within the community is on the increase, the Local Government will organise these different clubs to compete with each other. Competitions will be organised among the different clubs and among the school teams to further promote physical activities among the youths within the State. The NASCOM will also work in partnership with the Nigerian Heart Foundation to give health talks during the competitions. The competitions will also be an avenue for the Nigerian Heart Foundation to carry out different screenings of participant’s biometrics such as BMI, blood pressure, blood sugar, weight, and height. Professional advice will be given on results of the screening.

On a national scale; a larger number of youths will be involved in physical activities, and sports competitions will bring about a platform for greater awareness and advocacy towards promoting physical activity and heart health among youths in secondary schools and at grassroots level in Nigeria.