Adverse associations of car time with markers of cardio-metabolic risk

Takemi Sugiyama,Katrien Wijndaele,Mohammad Javad Koohsari,Stephanie K Tanamas,David W Dunstan,Neville Owen

doi:10.1016/j.ypmed.2015.11.029

Abstract

ObjectiveTo examine associations of time spent sitting in cars with markers of cardio-metabolic risk in Australian adults. MethodData were from 2800 participants (age range: 34–65) in the 2011–12 Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle Study. Self-reported time spent in cars was categorized into four groups: ≤15min/day; >15 to ≤30min/day; >30 to ≤60min/day; and >60min/day. Markers of cardio-metabolic risk were body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, triglycerides, HDL (high-density lipoprotein)-cholesterol, fasting plasma glucose, 2-h plasma glucose, a clustered cardio-metabolic risk score, and having the metabolic syndrome or not. Multilevel linear and logistic regression analyses examined associations of car time with each cardio-metabolic risk outcome, adjusting for socio-demographic and behavioral variables and medication use for blood pressure and cholesterol/triglycerides. ResultsCompared to spending 15min/day or less in cars, spending more than 1h/day in cars was significantly associated with higher BMI, waist circumference, fasting plasma glucose, and clustered cardio-metabolic risk, after adjusting for socio-demographic attributes and potentially relevant behaviors including leisure-time physical activity and dietary intake. Gender interactions showed car time to be associated with higher BMI in men only. ConclusionsProlonged time spent sitting in cars, in particular over 1h/day, was associated with higher total and central adiposity and a more-adverse cardio-metabolic risk profile. Further studies, ideally using objective measures of sitting time in cars and prospective designs, are needed to confirm the impact of car use on cardio-metabolic disease risk.

Highlights

High volumes of daily sitting time, which are common in many countries (Matthews et al, 2008; Ng and Popkin, 2012) are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular and other chronic diseases (Cooper et al, 2014; Healy et al, 2008; Owen et al, 2010; Thorp et al, 2010; Wijndaele et al, 2014)
The mean daily duration in cars was 49 min, which is similar to the average daily duration of car use derived from household travel surveys in Australia (Ironmonger, 2008)
Compared to participants using a car for 15 min/day or less, those who spent more than 1 h/day in cars were more likely to have significantly higher BMI, waist circumference, fasting plasma glucose, and clustered cardio-metabolic risk

Summary

Introduction

High volumes of daily sitting time, which are common in many countries (Matthews et al, 2008; Ng and Popkin, 2012) are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular and other chronic diseases (Cooper et al, 2014; Healy et al, 2008; Owen et al, 2010; Thorp et al, 2010; Wijndaele et al, 2014). Of the specific sedentary behaviors, TV viewing time has been examined extensively and shown to be associated with cardiovascular mortality T. Sugiyama et al / Preventive Medicine 83 (2016) 26–30 understand how particular domain-specific sedentary behaviors are related to health risk. The proportion of adults who use a car as the main form of transport to work or for other commuting purposes is high: 86% in the USA and 78% in Australia (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2012; McKenzie and Rapino, 2011). Australian household travel surveys show that adults spend on average more than 50 min/day in a car (Ironmonger, 2008), with up to 18% of men and 12% of women spending more than 2 h/day (Sugiyama et al, 2012)

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