Manila, Philippines – The Department of Health (DOH) encouraged the public to accumulate 150 minutes of exercise per week to help burn calories.
This is timely during this holiday season when many are preparing their intermission numbers for their Year-end Parties.
According to the DOH, dancing can serve as a form of exercise.
Studies suggest that this method of exercise can help prevent chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure by burning calories.
It can also help balance a person’s blood sugar and insulin levels.
The DOH said that 30 to 60 minutes of dancing per day is one of the exercises they recommend.
Especially relevant during the holiday season, when everyone is preparing their intermission numbers for work, school, or family-related gatherings, whether they are students, employees, or anyone else.
However, according to the National Health Promotion & Literacy Longitudinal Study (2024), only 1 in 5 Filipinos achieves the target of 150 minutes.
During 30 minutes of light dancing, a person can burn 75–125 calories.
If dancing at a faster pace, 150–200 calories can be burned, while high-energy dancing can burn 250 calories or more.
The DOH’s encouragement is also part of the Ligtas Christmas campaign by the agency and the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF).
The campaign centers on three key advocacies as Christmas approaches such as proper nutrition and exercise, travel safety and avoiding fireworks.
The DOH emphasized that the campaign was launched to remind the public that cases of hypertension and high blood sugar rise during the Christmas season.
The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) supports the campaign and has encouraged all local governments to establish safe zones and ban fireworks in major parts of Manila, especially given the high number of firework-related injuries reported last year.