Today, April 7
th, is World Health Day. This is a day to celebrate the brave healthcare workers that put themselves at risk, especially during our current crisis. Additionally, World Health Day is a great time for people to consider their own heath.
As our readers are keenly aware, the current pandemic has many of us practicing social distancing and avoiding some of our favorite forms of exercise. Even if your gym isn’t shut down, working out in a crowded and sweaty public room is probably not the best idea. Instead, to help keep our minds and bodies strong, people are looking for alternative ways to stay fit. Fortunately, the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently made a statement that COVID-19 does not appear to be transmittable via swimming. This is one effective way to keep yourself healthy, even when you have to stay home.
For our blog today, let’s take a look at the history of World Health Day and see some practical ways pool and hot tub owners can stay fit without venturing out into public.
What is World Health Day?
According to
the official website, World Health Day is a global health awareness day that was created to mark the founding of the World Health Organization (WHO). The tradition began back in 1948, when the WHO decided, during it’s first World Health Assembly, to create an annual event that would celebrate global health issues.
This year’s theme shouldn’t surprise many people: “Support nurses and midwives.”
You guessed it – amidst our current troubles, the WHO is using World Health Day to remind world leaders and citizens of the crucial work being performed by nurses and other health workers on a daily basis.
Here’s how the WHO describes it:
“In this International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife, World Health Day will highlight the current status of nursing around the world. WHO and its partners will make a series of recommendations to strengthen the nursing and midwifery workforce.”
Keeping Yourself Healthy
Now, it would be difficult for someone to not notice the struggles that our medical care workers are currently going through. It is critical that we all offer them support in these trying times.
When all is said and done, World Health Day is a good time to get a handle on our personal health. There has been a lot of joking going around about “gaining the quarantine 15 pounds.” It makes sense. After all, a lot of us are eating poorly and spending an inordinate amount of time indoors. As we mentioned earlier, there is a silver lining for anyone who owns a pool or a hot tub. Believe it or not, these are still a terrific way to get out of the house and do something healthy. World Health Day can be just the catalyst you need.
Swimming is Healthy and Fun
First and foremost,
swimming is an extremely healthy form of exercise. It offers a full-body workout, by exercising multiple muscle groups at once. Additionally, swimming is quite healthy for your heart and lungs.
Beyond physical health, swimming can offer excellent stress relief. Let’s face it, being cooped up in the house all day is starting to wear on people. An invigorating swim can help focus your body and take your mind off some of the stress. So it’s a great way to be mindful of your mental health as well.
For parents with young children, this can be an excellent time for your kids to
learn how to swim. Obviously, learning from a proper licensed teaching program is best, but keeping a close eye on your child and making sure that they stay in the shallow section can help to acclimate your kids to the water. Besides, just like adults, kids need stress relief too!
If you are lucky enough to have a swimming pool, take this opportunity to use it! Just be absolutely sure to lock up your pool fence when everyone comes inside. Sadly, drowning is still a very real danger. This is especially true when bored kids are trapped at home and curious.
This World Health Day, head out to the pool and take a dip. It may not be a good time for pool parties or community pools, but you can absolutely have a fun and healthy time while practicing social distancing.
