Abstract
BackgroundObesity in North America is now endemic, and increased understanding of the determinants of physical inactivity is critical. This analysis identified predictors of declines in physical activity over 5 years among adults in low-income, inner-city neighbourhoods.MethodsData on leisure time physical activity were collected in telephone interviews in 1992 and 1997 from 765 adults (47% of baseline respondents), as part of the evaluation of a community-based cardiovascular disease risk reduction program.ResultsOne-third of 527 participants who were physically active at baseline, were inactive in 1997. Predictors of becoming inactive included female sex (OR = 1.63 95% CI (1.09, 2.43)), older age (1.02 (1.01, 1.04)), higher BMI (1.57 (1.03, 2.40)), poor self-rated health (1.39 (1.05, 1.84)), lower self-efficacy for physical activity (1.46 (1.00, 2.14)), and not using a neighborhood facility for physical activity (1.61 (1.02, 2.14)).ConclusionThese results highlight the fact that a variety of variables play a role in determining activity level, from demographic variables such as age and sex, to psychosocial and environmental variables. In addition, these results highlight the important role that other health-related variables may play in predicting physical activity level, in particular the observed association between baseline BMI and the increased risk of becoming inactive over time. Lastly, these results demonstrate the need for multi-component interventions in low-income communities, which target a range of issues, from psychosocial factors, to features of the physical environment.
Highlights
Obesity in North America is endemic, and increased understanding of the determinants of physical inactivity is critical
Determinants of the adoption and maintenance of healthy physical activity behaviors in adults identified to date include demographic factors (age [10,11,15,16], sex [6], socio-economic status (SES) [8,10,11,13]), psychosocial factors, and features of the physical environment
The median Leisure Time Physical Activity (LTPA) score among the 334 participants who remained active at follow-up was 8.0 hours/ week at baseline, and 7.0 hours/week at follow-up
Summary
Obesity in North America is endemic, and increased understanding of the determinants of physical inactivity is critical. This analysis identified predictors of declines in physical activity over 5 years among adults in low-income, inner-city neighbourhoods. Determinants of the adoption and maintenance of healthy physical activity behaviors in adults identified to date include demographic factors (age [10,11,15,16], sex [6], socio-economic status (SES) [8,10,11,13]), psychosocial factors (social support, self-efficacy, perceived barriers [17,18,19,20,21,22]), and features of the physical environment (i.e., access to sports facilities and neighbourhood safety [2328]). Longitudinal studies are essential so that a temporal relationship between a putative predictor and physical activity can be established
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More From: International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity
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