Abstract
BackgroundEmerging evidence suggests the adverse association between sedentary behaviour (SB) with physical and mental health, but few studies have investigated the relationship between volume of physical activity and psychological distress. The present study examined the independent and interactive associations of daily SB and weekly level of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) with psychological distress in a multi-ethnic Asian population.MethodsDe-identified data of 4,337 adults (18–79 years old) on sedentary behaviors, physical activity patterns, psychological distresses, and other relevant variables were obtained from the Singapore Ministry of Health’s 2010 National Health Survey. Psychological distress was assessed using General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12), whereas total daily SB and total weekly volume (MET/minutes) of MVPA were estimated using the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire version 2 (GPAQ v2). Multivariate logistic regression analyses were carried out to estimate the odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) of the independent and interactive relationships of SB and MVPA with prevalence of psychological distress.ResultsThe category of high SB was positively associated with increased odds (OR = 1.29, 1.04-1.59) for psychological distress, whereas the category of active was inversely associated with lower odds (OR = 0.73, 0.62-0.86) for psychological distress. Multivariate analyses for psychological distress by combined daily SB and weekly MVPA levels showed inverse associations between middle SB and active categories (OR = 0.58, 0.45 - 0.74) along with low SB and active categories (OR = 0.61, 0.47-0.80).ConclusionsThe present population-based cross-sectional study indicated that in the multi-ethnic Asian society of Singapore, a high level of SB was independently associated with psychological distress and meeting the recommended guidelines for physical activity along with ≤ 5 h/day of SB was associated with the lowest odds of psychological distress.
Highlights
Emerging evidence suggests the adverse association between sedentary behaviour (SB) with physical and mental health, but few studies have investigated the relationship between volume of physical activity and psychological distress
Health Study reported that 12.0% of Singaporeans had at least one affective, anxiety, or alcohol use disorder [2] and according to the Singapore 2010 National Health Survey, 12.9% of citizens reported having psychological distress [3]
After multivariate adjustment for potential confounding variables, the high SB category was independently associated with increased odds (OR = 1.29, 1.04-1.59) for psychological distress when compared to the referent low SB category
Summary
Emerging evidence suggests the adverse association between sedentary behaviour (SB) with physical and mental health, but few studies have investigated the relationship between volume of physical activity and psychological distress. The present study examined the independent and interactive associations of daily SB and weekly level of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) with psychological distress in a multi-ethnic Asian population. Health Study reported that 12.0% of Singaporeans had at least one affective, anxiety, or alcohol use disorder [2] and according to the Singapore 2010 National Health Survey, 12.9% of citizens reported having psychological distress (based on a General Health Questionnaire-12 [GHQ-12] score > 3) [3]. The expression and onset of psychological distress may vary across cultures [7,8] and at the population level it has been linked prospectively to all-cause mortality and Type II diabetes [9,10]. Because psychological distress may be part of a pathway to more severe mental and physical health problems, a need exists for public health practitioners and researchers to better understand the associations of health-related lifestyle behaviors with psychological distress
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