Save the Capital Crescent Trail
for Health
by Ken Harris
Preserving the Capital Crescent Trail exclusively for recreational use is essential for many reasons, but the most important is its contribution to the health of Montgomery County and DC residents and all who use it.
The medical community strongly agrees that moderate-to-vigorous physical activity improves the health of people of all ages and both sexes. Consider this quote from the recently released report of the Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services:
Very strong scientific evidence based on a wide range of well-conducted studies shows that physically active people have higher levels of health-related fitness and a lower risk profile for developing a number of disabling medical conditions than do people who are inactive.
In children and youth major benefits supported by strong evidence include enhanced cardio-respiratory and muscular fitness, cardiovascular and metabolic health biomarkers, bone health, body mass and composition. Less strong evidence supports selected measures of mental health.
In adults and older adults strong evidence demonstrates that, compared to less active counterparts, more active men and women have lower rates of all-cause mortality, coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, colon cancer, breast cancer and depression…
For older adults, strong evidence indicates that physical activity is associated with higher levels of functional health, a lower risk of falling and better cognitive function.
Recreational trails like the Capital Crescent Trail provide a unique opportunity to engage in low-cost exercise for better health without interference from motor vehicle traffic.
Pedestrians and cyclists run a constant risk of accidental collisions with cars when they walk or bicycle on roads and streets. For example, a common bicycle-car accident occurs when a bicyclist collides with an open car door.
In many areas of Montgomery County, including the vicinity of the Capital Crescent Trail, pedestrians and cyclists run these risks because they have to share streets with cars. On a dedicated trail like the Capital Crescent, pedestrians and bicyclists do not face these risks.
Moreover, all that’s needed for exercise on a trail is a comfortable pair of shoes for brisk walking or a second-hand bicycle. There are no admission charges or annual membership fees as at a gym or health club, and people don’t need to buy expensive, complicated-to-setup machines.
Because it is within the most densely populated areas of Montgomery County and Northwest DC, the Capital Crescent Trail is a resource that makes leisure time exercise feasible for residents of those areas.
Devoting some of one’s leisure time to exercise is essential because of automation and mechanization of the workplace and the home and our dependence on the private automobile for transportation.
Advocates of locating the Purple Line on the Capital Crescent Trail may feel that the rail line will not deter use of the trail for healthful leisure-time exercise. However, this is a shortsighted view.
Despite years of strong advocacy of regular exercise by the medical community and chronic- disease-fighting non-profits like The American Heart Association, a majority of Americans, according to the Centers for Disease Control, do not exercise enough for good health and a quarter of them are completely inactive in their leisure time.
As the area’s population grows and more people recognize the health benefits of exercise, the need for the trail as a safe, convenient place to exercise is certain also to grow. If the Purple Line takes up valuable space, the trail, already crowded with runners, walkers and cyclists will become even more crowded. And, the crowding will become a disincentive for people, especially those over age 50, to get the exercise they need.
A number of trends presage a long-term increase in the number of Americans who are physically active enough for good health and cause demand for trail use, including Capital Crescent Trail use, to increase. Here are a few:
- Many public and private organizations like The American Heart Association advocate strongly for people to exercise more and their advice gets lots of mass media attention like the weekly Misfits column in The Washington Post.
- Adult Americans have increasing opportunities to engage in athletic events like marathons, 10K runs and long-distance bike rides. Conveniently located trails facilitate their training for these events.
- Changes in laws, regulations and social attitudes are making more exercise possible for more people. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which has been in effect for a generation, has resulted in a dramatic increase in women’s sports and fitness participation and hence their expanded need for trails and other exercise facilities after high school and college.
- Constantly improving technology is making exercise more possible for more people by providing improved means of protecting against and recovering from injuries and by keeping people comfortable, connected and entertained as they exercise.
- Employers are offering wellness programs to reduce health insurance costs and improve employee productivity.
While it may seem unlikely that these trends will significantly reduce the proportion of Americans who are inactive, major changes in health behaviors do take place over extended periods. Consider the dramatic decline in smoking since the first Surgeon General’s report on smoking and health since 1964.
One final way in which the Capital Crescent Trail is contributing to health is that many people in greater Washington are combining their need for healthful exercise with their commute to work. The need for exercise, traffic congestion and the high cost of gasoline have combined to make bicycling to work a feasible alternative for those able to do so.
Bicycle shops throughout the area are doing a brisk business as people decide to give bicycle commuting a try. This mirrors a nationwide trend to which bicycle manufacturers are responding by producing new lines of bicycles like Trek’s Lime models that are better suited to the needs of commuters than those favored by bicycle racers and pure fitness enthusiasts.
If the Purple Line is located on the Capital Crescent Trail, the increased crowding will be a disincentive to further increases in bicycle commuting.
Return to Table of Contents
|
