Health and Social Impact of Active Fans
A key element of the Active Fans programme was to understand the impact that it had on the health and the social lives of the participants.
The aims of the project were to increase the target group’s engagement in health-enhancing physical activities (HEPA) and promote the true values of European sport, which include raising awareness for sport and physical exercise among sedentary population groups. Additionally, it aimed to endorse the culture of sport and advocate values such as solidarity, respect and teamwork.
The programme also worked towards addressing overarching European policy in the field of sport through the collective documentation of new and innovative sport methodologies.
The following section consists of information that has been collected from Active Fans partners, research articles, studies, and health industry reports regarding the impacts of Active Fans from a scientific perspective.
Lesson learnt
Throughout the life-cycle of the programme, the Active Fans sessions, delivered by the project partners, have provided a platform for positive health related interventions. In addition to the physical health benefits that participants have reported as a result of the practical sessions, they also experienced an increase in social interaction. The sessions provided an environment where participants could socially interact through shared values such as solidarity and teamwork. Throughout their sessions, people were able to meet up with each other and create a feeling of unity by helping each other to get fit.
Impact Report:
- BMI Improvement
- Improvement of blood pressure
- Subscription to physical activities
- Social inclusion
- Nutritional changes
Over a 12-week period, the data that EFDN collected from the project partners indicated that the majority of the participants have achieved improvements in terms of physical and mental health, as well as nutrition. A significant number of Active Fans participants are still continuing their sport activities together or have subscribed to a sports club or association. One of our partners reported that a success story from their group involved a person that lost 14,1 kg after 12 weeks. Additionally, they measured a reduction of this person’s BMI from 36,1 to 31,3, and saw a decrease in the person’s waist size from 128 cm to 105 cm. This project has shown its benefits in several areas such as social inclusion, health improvement and nutritional behaviour.
