The impact of physical activity on women's health: evidences for Brazil

The benefits of practicing physical activity on health have been explored in some studies in Brazil. However, the causal nature of this relationship still lacks evidence. The present study aims to contribute by presenting an analysis of the impact of physical activity on the health of adult women in Brazil, using the body-mass index (BMI). In order to do so, microdata from the 2013 National Health Survey and the multivariate probit model are used. The identification strategy employed consists of a restriction of exclusion of the variable that indicates whether there is a public place for the practice of physical activity near the home. The results indicate that, when there is a public place near the residence, there is an increase in the probability of practicing physical activity. There is evidence of a positive impact of physical activity on women's health for the set of indicators used.