Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Cardiorespiratory Fitness Reduces The Risk Of Incident Hypertension Associated With A Parental History Of Hypertension, Robin P. Shook, Duck-Chul Lee, Xuemei Sui, Vivek Prasad, Steven P. Hooker, Timothy S. Church, Steven N. Blair

Faculty Publications

Family history of hypertension increases the risk of an individual to develop hypertension, whereas moderate-to-high cardiorespiratory fitness has the opposite effect. However, the joint association of each on the development of hypertension is not well understood. We studied fitness and incident hypertension in 6278 participants who were given a preventative medical examination. Thirty-three percent reported a parent with hypertension, and there were 1545 cases of incident hypertension after a mean of 4.7 years. The presence of parental hypertension was associated with a 28% higher risk of developing hypertension after adjustments for age, sex, and examination year. After further adjustments for …

Changes In Cvd Risk Factors In The Activity Counseling Trial, Meghan Baruth, Sarah Wilcox, James F. Sallis, Abby C. King, Bess H. Marcus, Steven N. Blair

Faculty Publications

Primary care facilities may be a natural setting for delivering interventions that focus on behaviors that improve cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors. The purpose of this study was to examine the 24-month effects of the Activity Counseling Trial (ACT) on CVD risk factors, to examine whether changes in CVD risk factors differed according to baseline risk factor status, and to examine whether changes in fitness were associated with changes in CVD risk factors. ACT was a 24-month multicenter randomized controlled trial to increase physical activity. Participants were 874 inactive men and women aged 35-74 years. Participants were randomly assigned to …

More Collaboration - More Power In Combating Ill Health, Ilkka Vuori, Steven N. Blair, Fiona C. Bull, Peter T. Katzmarzyk

Faculty Publications

This symposium highlighted the position of physical activity as one of the most important factors causally related to common non-communicable diseases (NCDs), and discussed the need for including physical activity in comprehensive prevention strategies and policies to combat the major NCDs. Lifestyle factors such as smoking, physical inactivity, and obesity are all major risk factors for ischemic heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, and several cancers, and physical inactivity globally ranks as the fourth leading risk factor for mortality. Despite the solid evidence that physical activity is related to several NCDs, stronger advocacy actions are required because physical activity is not viewed …

Race Differences In Activity, Fitness, And Bmi In Female Eighth Graders Categorized By Sports Participation Status, John R. Sirard, Karin A. Pfeiffer, Marsha Dowda, Russell R. Pate

Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to identify racial differences in physical activity (PA), fitness, and BMI in female 8th-grade sports participants and nonparticipants. Girls from 31 South Carolina middle schools (N=1,903, 48% White; mean age=13.6 ± 0.63) reported PA and previous year sports-team participation, completed a submaximal fitness test, and had height and weight measured. Sports team participation was positively associated with PA and negatively associated with television viewing and BMI, in a dose-response manner. Compared with Whites, African-Americans reported less PA and more television viewing, and had greater BMI scores. Whereas PA intervention programs that incorporate …

Defining Accelerometer Thresholds For Activity Intensities In Adolescent Girls, Margarita S. Treuth, Kathryn H. Schmitz, Diane J. Catellier, Robert G. Mcmurray, David M. Murray, Maria João C. A. Almeida, Scott Going, James E. Norman, Russell R. Pate

Faculty Publications

Purpose - To derive a regression equation that estimates metabolic equivalent (MET) from accelerometer counts, and to define thresholds of accelerometer counts that can be used to delineate sedentary, light, moderate, and vigorous activity.

Methods - Seventy-four healthy 8th grade girls, age 13-14 yr, were recruited from urban areas of Baltimore, MD, Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN, and Columbia, SC, to participate in the study. Accelerometer and oxygen consumption (VO₂) data for 10 activities that varied in intensity from sedentary (e.g., TV watching) to vigorous (e.g., running) were collected. While performing these activities, the girls wore two accelerometers, a heart …

Cardiovascular Disease Prevention By Sports: Myth Or Reality?, Maria João C. A. Almeida, Steven N. Blair

Faculty Publications

Low levels of physical activity and fitness substantially increase risk of several chronic diseases, reduce longevity, and lead to loss of function. The strength and relation of inactivity to health problems and the high prevalence of sedentary habits in most countries of the world make lack of exercise a major public health problem. Fortunately, there is now good consensus regarding public health recommendations for physical activity from many important medical, scientific, and public health organizations. Recent research on physical activity interventions provides additional approaches to helping sedentary adults become more physically active.

Tracking Of Physical Activity, Physical Inactivity, And Health-Related Physical Fitness In Rural Youth, Russell R. Pate, Stewart G. Trost, Marsha Dowda, Alise E. Ott, Dianne S. Ward, Ruth P. Saunders, Gwen A. Felton

Faculty Publications

This study examined the tracking of selected measures of physical activity, inactivity, and fitness in a cohort of rural youth. Students (N=181, 54.7% female, 63.5% African American) completed test batteries during their fifth- (age=10.7±0.7 years), sixth-, and seventh-grade years. The Previous Day Physical Activity Recall (PDPAR) was used to assess 30-min blocks of vigorous physical activity (VPA), moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), TV watching and other sedentary activities, and estimated energy expenditure (EE). Fitness measures included the PWC 170 cycle ergometer test, strength tests, triceps skinfold thickness, and BMI. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) for VPA, MVPA, and after-school EE …