Racial, Ethnic, and Nativity Disparities in Physical Activity and Sedentary Time among Cancer Prevention Study-3 Participants.

Abstract

Understanding racial/ethnic and nativity disparities in physical activity (PA) is important, as certain subgroups bear a disproportionate burden of physical inactivity-related diseases. This descriptive study compared mean leisure-time moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (LTMVPA) by race/ethnicity and nativity. The Cancer Prevention Study-3 (78.1% women; age, 47.9 ± 9.7 yr) includes 4722 (1.9%) Asian/Pacific Islander; 1232 (0.5%) Black/Indigenous (non-White) Latino; 16,041 (6.5%) White Latino; 9295 (3.8%) non-Latino Black; 2623 (1.1%) Indigenous American; and 210,504 (85.7%) non-Latino White participants across the United States and Puerto Rico. Participants completed validated LTMVPA and 24-h time use surveys at enrollment (2006-2013). Differences in LTMVPA across race/ethnicity and nativity were examined by ANCOVA with paired Tukey tests adjusting for age and sex. The proportion of time spent sitting, sleeping, and on PA by race/ethnicity was also compared. There were significant differences in LTMVPA by race/ethnicity (race main effect, P < 0.001; nativity, P = 0.072; interaction, P < 0.001). Pairwise comparisons showed that White participants born abroad were the most active (23.8 MET-h·wk-1) and non-White Latino participants born abroad were the least active (17.9 MET-h·wk-1). Among Latinos, participants born in Puerto Rico were 6.6-7.3 MET-h·wk-1 less active than participants born in Mexico, the United States/Canada, or other countries. There were variations in time use by race/ethnicity, with the largest difference in time spent sitting while watching TV. Black participants spent 14.8% of the day (~3.5 h) sitting watching TV, which was 78 min longer than Asian/Pacific Islander participants. This study suggests that there are differences in LTMVPA accumulation by race, ethnicity, and nativity. Results can be used to identify demographic groups that may benefit from culturally tailored PA interventions.