Physical health impacts

There is a well proven set of evidence within the health and sports sectors of the health benefits of regularly taking part in physical activity and sport. These include reducing the risks for diseases and conditions such as heart attack, stroke, cancer or type 2 diabetes. Some interesting findings emerged from the studies on the additional benefits that are created by outdoor sports (but may not be created in the same way by sport more widely). There was evidence that participants expended more energy in natural settings and are more inclined to carry out the activity regularly and for a participant’s life-course. There was evidence that walking, and cycling can have population-level health benefits reducing the risk of mortality from a range of conditions by over 10%.

While outdoor sports are often perceived to be higher risk with the associated likelihood of occurring injuries, the evidence found by the BOSS project was not quantified so couldn’t not be included within the social value model. There was evidence that highlighted the risks from inactivity and how the range of health impacts emerging from participation in outdoor sport offset this risk.