'We are in a partnership here': U.S. Surgeon General cites vital role of parks and recreation in addressing America's health problems.

One of the high points of this year's Congress came early on, when U.S. Surgeon General Vice Admiral Richard H. Carmona gave the keynote address at the opening general session on Oct. 22.

Carmona entertained the huge crowd on hand by beginning his talk with a personal slant. Saying that his life story is perhaps "the American dream come true," Carmona related his unlikely transformation from tough New York City street kid and high school dropout to Army enlistee and combat decorated Vietnam veteran, then medical school standout and professor to becoming the 17th Surgeon General of the United States in August 2002. The modest Carmona told how he first thought the call from the White House was a prank by friends, and then was convinced that the White House had him confused with another Richard Carmona.

Moving from the personal to policy, Carmona, who said one of his first jobs was as a public lifeguard in New York City, stressed the vital role that parks and recreation has in the nation's health agenda. Carmona lamented that 95 percent of health costs in the United States go to treatment, while only 5 percent go to prevention and said that NRPA has a key role in shifting the country's health-policy paradigm. Speaking about NRPA's Hearts N' Parks program as the type of health policy the United States needs more of, Carmona said, "The National Recreation and Park Association has become a key partner with the Department of Health and Human Services in our efforts to get America moving."

Below are excerpts from Carmona's address. The full text is available on NRPA's Web site (www.nrpa.org).

"When I was nominated, President Bush and [Department of Health and Human Services] Secretary Thompson asked me to focus on three priorities, which are strongly evidence-based.

Number one, prevention. What can each of us do in our lives and communities to make ourselves and our families healthier? You all deal with prevention every day--recreation is prevention at its basics.

Number two, preparedness. This is a new issue. My 16 predecessors as Surgeon General never had to worry about germs as weapons or planes as weapons.

Number three--one that I'm particularly elated the president chose to embrace--that is health care disparities.

There's a currency that weaves through all these three priorities, and that is health literacy. We are largely a country that's health illiterate. In order to make progress in these three areas, it's essential that we raise the level of awareness and understanding of the American public in everything from understanding the value of parks and recreation to reading food labels and understanding nutritional information. Most of the public don't get the connection between a walk in the park and good health, and that's where you come in.

We are in a partnership here. Our extensive parks and recreation system is part of what makes America great. In many areas, parks are truly the heart of the community. In communities across the nation, your parks and recreation centers help improve the quality of people's lives. What we all have in common is this: We are partners in the business of disease prevention and health promotion.

The link between recreation and mental health has been well known since Frederick Law Olmstead designed New York City's Central Park. We now know that physical activity ... can actually reduce feelings depression, anxiety and stress. And, of course, physical activity is a key element in helping us maintain a healthy weight and improving cardiovascular functioning.

More than ever before, we need the opportunities for physical exercise that you all help to provide. Seven of 10 Americans who die each year, die of a chronic disease. Most of these diseases are preventable by relatively simple steps--healthy eating, being physically active, not smoking, making some good choices in your life.

After tobacco-related illness, we have another epidemic that's rapidly catching up to tobacco, and that is obesity, and that is the leading, fastest-growing killer of Americans. More than 300,000 Americans die every year of obesity-related diseases.

The good news is that obesity and its co-morbidities are preventable. We need a paradigm shift in American health care. We need to mine from a treatment-oriented society to a prevention-oriented society. We've got to embrace prevention. You all have done it already. We simply have to invest more in prevention.

The science is clear. The fundamental reason our children arc overweight is this--too many children are caring too much and moving too little. Kids need to spend more time on the play ground and less on the PlayStation.

"We've got to show kids it doesn't matter if you're picked first or last, but only that they're in the game. Not all kids are going to be athletes, but they can all be physically active.

The National Recreation and Park Association has become a key partner with the Department of Health and Human Services in our efforts to get America moving.

We are working together to reduce barriers to physical activity at the community level and to provide opportunities for physical activity. Whether your venue is a beach, a state park or an inner-city recreation center, you are partners with us in creating a healthier America.