A nation of couch potatoes? Physical activity, sedentary behaviour and health in Ireland

Effective national level health guidelines and policy must be based on accurate information about how physical activity and sedentary behaviour contribute to health. Research undertaken at the University of Limerick has utilised technology to accurately quantify levels of physical activity and sedentary behaviours, and has related these measures to both health indices and behavioural determinants. Publications based on these findings have been widely reported in the national media and referenced at government level. Members of UL’s Centre of Physical Activity and Health Research have contributed to the National Guidelines on Physical Activity for Ireland, Ireland’s National Physical Activity Plan and Ireland’s 2014 Report Card on Physical Activity in Children and Youth. The centre is currently taking a leading role in the Determinants of Diet and Physical Activity Choice (DEDIPAC) Knowledge Hub (www.dedipac.eu)

Additional file 1: of Associations of self-reported physical activity and depression in 10,000 Irish adults across harmonised datasets: a DEDIPAC-study

Table S1. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) derived from binominal logistic regression analyses as indicators of association between physical activity (PA) and covariates and depressive symptoms. (DOCX 17 kb

Data on determinants are needed to curb the sedentary epidemic in Europe. Lessons learnt from the DEDIPAC European knowledge hub

Societal and technological changes have resulted in sitting being the dominant posture during most activities of daily living, such as learning, working, travelling and leisure time. Too much time spent in seated activities, referred to as sedentary behaviour, is a novel concern for public health as it is one of the key lifestyle causes of poor health. The European DEDIPAC (Determinants of Diet and Physical Activity) Knowledge Hub coordinated the work of 35 institutions across 12 European member states to investigate the determinants of sedentary behaviour. DEDIPAC reviewed current evidence, set a theoretical framework and harmonised the available epidemiological data. The main results are summarised. The conclusion is that there is a dire lack of data that is exploitable across Europe to inform policy and intervention. There is an urgent need to develop international data collection compliant with FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Re-usable) and standardised surveillance systems for sedentary behaviour

Biological determinants of physical activity across the life course: a “Determinants of Diet and Physical Activity” (DEDIPAC) umbrella systematic literature review

Background: Despite the large number of studies and reviews available, the evidence regarding the biological determinants of physical activity (PA) is inconclusive. In this umbrella review, we summarized the current evidence on the biological determinants of PA across the life course, by pooling the results of the available systematic literature reviews (SLRs) and meta-analyses (MAs). Methods: We conducted an online search on MEDLINE, ISI Web of Science, Scopus, and SPORTDiscus databases up to January 2018. SLRs and MAs of observational studies that investigated the association between biological determinants of PA and having PA as outcome were considered eligible. The extracted data were assessed based on the importance of the determinants, the strength of evidence, and the methodological quality. Results: We identified 19 reviews of which most were of moderate methodological quality. Determinants that were studied most frequently among all ages and demonstrated evidence suggesting a positive association to PA were younger age, being male, higher health status, and higher physical fitness levels. Among adults, normal birth weight was found to be positively associated to PA with convincing strength of evidence, while findings among adolescents were inconsistent and with limited strength of evidence. Conclusions: Different social or behavioral factors may contribute to the decrease of PA with age and among females versus males, and creating programmes targeted at diverse ages, female population, and adults with abnormal birth weight is recommended. Future studies should use prospective study designs, standardized definitions of PA, and objective measurement methods of PA assessment

Quality assessment of the included reviews using the AMSTAR checklist.

<p>Quality assessment of the included reviews using the AMSTAR checklist.</p

Characteristics of the included reviews.

<p>Characteristics of the included reviews.</p

Criteria for grading evidence.

<p>Criteria for grading evidence.</p

Results of the included reviews.

<p>Results of the included reviews.</p

Importance of a determinant.

<p>Importance of a determinant.</p