FITNESS ON THE FLY: Healthy Air Travel

Think for a minute about the last time you traveled as an airline passenger. Did you stand in long lines waiting to board your aircraft? Did you spend a lot of time seated during the flight? Did you arrive at your destination tired and hypohydrated? If you answered ‘‘yes’’ to any of these questions, you may be wondering if modern air travel can be healthy. The purpose of this article is to address the issue of healthy air travel in two parts. The first part will educate you on some of the common health-related problems associated with flying. The second part shares information about U.S. airports and the services they offer to keep you physically active and healthy when you fly. This information was gathered by the ACSM Task Force on Healthy Air Travel (TFHAT). Contact information for this working group can be found in the Recommended Readings section at the end of this article.