In 2022, in Italy, the share of sedentary people, meaning those who declare that they do not participate in sport or physical activity in their free time, is equal to more than a third of the population. We could be described as a country of "parlor sportsmen". These are the findings from the Permanent Observatory on Sport's "Italians and Sport" report. A harsh photograph that focuses primarily on the southern regions and the islands, where the climatic conditions, which appear to contradict logic, should encourage more outdoor physical activity. The significant North-South gradient, with the lowest rates reported in the autonomous provinces of Trento (16.2 percent) and Bolzano (16.9 percent) and the highest in Calabria (59.3 percent) and Sicily (59.3 percent), demonstrates Italy's geographical divisions. Similarly, in other southern areas, more than half of the population does not engage in sport or physical activity: Campania (55.1 percent), Puglia (54.8 percent), and Basilicata (53.7 percent). Furthermore, in Sicily, Calabria, and Puglia, the steady drop in sedentariness recorded over 20 years was offset by an increase in 2022. Istat data confirm well-known social inequalities, with significant differences in educational qualifications at all ages, particularly among adults aged 25-44: in 2022, the share of people with low educational qualifications who do not engage in sports or physical activity is more than double that of those with a higher level of education (49.7 percent vs 17.9 percent). Sedentary lifestyles have declined to a greater extent among those with a high level of education over the last two decades (2001-2021), highlighting social inequities.
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