Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the association of objectively measured lifestyle light-intensity physical activity (LLPA) and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) with various biological markers and chronic diseases among a nationally representative sample of U.S. older adults (65+ years).
Design: A cross-sectional design was used for this study.
Setting: Data were obtained from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2003-2006.
Subjects: Subjects were 1,496 older U.S. adults.
Measures: Participants wore an accelerometer for at least 4 days and completed questionnaires to assess sociodemographics and chronic disease information. Blood samples were taken to assess biological markers.
Analysis: Adjusted Wald tests and Poisson regression were used to examine the association of LLPA and MVPA with biological markers and chronic disease.
Results: Older adults engaging in ≥300 min/wk of LLPA had lower observed values for body mass index, waist circumference, C-reactive protein, and insulin resistance compared to those engaging in <300 min/wk of LLPA. Additionally, those engaging in <300 min/wk of LLPA had a rate 1.18 times greater for having chronic disease compared to those engaging in ≥300 min/wk of LLPA.
Conclusion: In this national sample of older U.S. adults, participation in at least 300 min/wk of LLPA was associated with more favorable health outcomes. Future experimental studies are warranted to confirm these findings.
Keywords: Accelerometry; Biomarkers; Chronic Disease; Epidemiology; Exercise; Health focus: physical activity, weight control; Manuscript format: research; National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES); Outcome measure: biometric; Research purpose: modeling/relationship testing, descriptive; Setting: national; Strategy: education, behavior change; Study design: cross-sectional; Target population age: seniors; Target population circumstances: education, race/ethnicity.