BMI transitions in Australian women: amount and causes of weight change associated with progression from healthy to unhealthy BMI over 16 years

Introduction and Aims: Progression from healthy weight to overweight or obesity is associated with numerous health problems in young adult women. The aims were to track BMI over 16 years in women who had a healthy BMI in 1996 (when they were 18-23), to calculate rates of weight change associated with maintenance and/or change in BMI, and to examine the determinants of these changes

The evolution of time use approaches for understanding activities of daily living in a public health context

This Supplement aims to raise awareness and knowledge of how time use surveys may be applied to studying health behaviours such as physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and eating. This commentary provides an overview and discussion of the papers in this Supplement about time use and health research, and considers possible future directions for the field

In search of lost time: When people start an exercise program, where does the time come from? A randomized controlled trial

The objective of this study was to investigate changes in use of time when undertaking a structured exercise program.This study used a randomized, multi-arm, controlled trial design.A total of 129 insufficiently active adults aged 18-60 years were recruited and randomly allocated to one of three groups, a Moderate or Extensive six-week exercise group (150 and 300 additional minutes of exercise per week, respectively) or a Control group. Prescribed exercise was accumulated through both group and individual sessions. Use of time was measured at baseline and end-program using the Multimedia Activity Recall for Children and Adults, a computerized 24-h recall instrument. Daily minutes of activity in activity domains and energy expenditure zones were determined.Relative to changes in the control group, daily time spent in the physical activity [F (2, 108)=20.21,

Accuracy of heart rate watches: Implications for weight management

Background: Wrist-worn monitors claim to provide accurate measures of heart rate and energy expenditure. People wishing to lose weight use these devices to monitor energy balance, however the accuracy of these devices to measure such parameters has not been established. Aim: To determine the accuracy of four wrist-worn devices (Apple Watch, Fitbit Charge HR, Samsung Gear S and Mio Alpha) to measure heart rate and energy expenditure at rest and during exercise. Methods: Twenty-two healthy volunteers (50% female; aged 24 ± 5.6 years) completed ∼1-hr protocols involving supine and seated rest, walking and running on a treadmill and cycling on an ergometer. Data from the devices collected during the protocol were compared with reference methods: electrocardiography (heart rate) and indirect calorimetry (energy expenditure). Results: None of the devices performed significantly better overall, however heart rate was consistently more accurate than energy expenditure across all four devices. Correlations between the devices and reference methods were moderate to strong for heart rate (0.67-0.95 [0.35 to 0.98]) and weak to strong for energy expenditure (0.16-0.86 [-0.25 to 0.95]). All devices underestimated both outcomes compared to reference methods. The percentage error for heart rate was small across the devices (range: 1-9%) but greater for energy expenditure (9-43%). Similarly, limits of agreement were considerably narrower for heart rate (ranging from -27.3 to 13.1 bpm) than energy expenditure (ranging from -266.7 to 65.7 kcals) across devices. Conclusion: These devices accurately measure heart rate. However, estimates of energy expenditure are poor and would have implications for people using these devices for weight loss. © 2016 Wallen et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited

Infographic. All health professionals should talk about physical activity with patients

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Introducing novel approaches for examining the variability of individuals' physical activity

Tudor-Locke and colleagues previously assessed steps/day for 1 year. The aim of this study was to use this data set to introduce a novel approach for the investigation of whether individual's physical activity exhibits periodicity fluctuating round a mean and, if so, the degree of fluctuation and whether the mean changes over time. Twenty-three participants wore a pedometer for 365 days, recorded steps/day and whether the day was a workday. Fourier transform of each participant's daily steps data showed the physical activity had a periodicity of 7 days in half of the participants, matching the periodicity of the workday pattern. Activity level remained stable in half of the participants, decreased in ten participants and increased in two. In conclusion, the 7-day periodicity of activity in half of the participants and correspondence with the workday pattern suggest a social or environmental influence. The novel analytical approach introduced herein allows the determination of the periodicity of activity, the degree of variability in activity that is tolerated during day-to-day life and whether the activity level is stable. Results from the use of these methodologies in larger data sets may enable a more focused approach to the design of interventions that aim to increase activity

A hard day’s night: time use in shift workers

Background Differences in how shift workers accumulate physical activity (PA) while at work and in leisure time, on days when they are working at night, during the day, or on non-work days, are largely unexplored. The aim of this study was to improve understanding of physical activity patterns in two groups of shift workers, and to measure variations according to their shift schedules. Methods This pragmatic pilot study was conducted in two workplaces. Employees in Workplace 1 (n = 10) were required to drive for most of their shift. Workplace 2 was a manufacturing company where most of the employees’ (n = 30) occupational tasks were completed while standing. Use of time was assessed using the adult version of the Multimedia Activity Recall for Children and Adults (MARCA) administered by telephone interview. Three MARCA interviews were conducted with each participant, in order to capture a typical profile of a day-shift day, a night-shift day and a non-work day, using a two-day recall for each interview. Participants were asked to wear the activPAL3™ activity monitor, for 7 consecutive days. Paired and independent t-tests were used to compute significant differences between day-shift, night-shift and non-work days within and between workplaces. Results The total number of days quantified for the MARCA data was 192 days (64 day-shift, 60 night-shift and 68 non-work days). Workplace 2 participants reported more physical activity and less sedentary behaviour on day-shift and night shift days than on non-work days. Time spent in sedentary behaviour was similar on day-shift, night-shift and non-work days in Workplace 1. Workplace 1 participants were more sedentary (p = 0.003) and engaged in more light intensity PA (p = 0.031) on day-shift and night-shift workdays, than those from Workplace 2. Sleep times were lowest on day-shift days. Conclusion As the occupational tasks for participants in Workplace 2 involved physical activities, the findings do not support the conventional view that shift workers are more sedentary than those who only work during the day. Rather occupational tasks appear to be a more important determinant of physical activity patterns both on work and non-work days than varying shift patterns

Results From Australia’s 2016 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth

Background: Two years on from the inaugural Active Healthy Kids Australia (AHKA) Physical Activity Report Card, there has been little to no change with the majority of Australian children still insufficiently active. Methods: The 2016 AHKA Report Card was developed using the best available national- and state-based physical activity data, which were evaluated by the AHKA Research Working Group using predetermined weighting criteria and benchmarks to assign letter grades to the 12 Report Card indicators. Results: In comparison with 2014, Overall Physical Activity Levels was again assigned a D- with Organized Sport and Physical Activity Participation increasing to a B (was B-) and Active Transport declining to a C- (was C). The settings and sources of influence again performed well (A- to a C+), however Government Strategies and Investments saw a decline (C+ to a D). The traits associated with physical activity were also graded poorly (C- to a D). Conclusions: Australian youth are insufficiently active and engage in high levels of screen-based sedentary behaviors. While a range of support structures exist, Australia lacks an overarching National Physical Activity Plan that would unify the country and encourage the cultural shift needed to face the inactivity crisis head on

Peer support for the maintenance of physical activity and health in cancer survivors: the PEER trial - a study protocol of a randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Despite an overwhelming body of evidence showing the benefits of physical activity (PA) and exercise for cancer survivors, few survivors meet the exercise oncology guidelines. Moreover, initiating, let alone maintaining exercise programs with cancer survivors continues to have limited success. The aim of this trial is to evaluate the influence of peer support on moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) and various markers of health 12 months following a brief supervised exercise intervention in cancer survivors. METHODS: Men and women previously diagnosed with histologically-confirmed breast, colorectal or prostate cancer (n = 226), who are \u3e1-month post-treatment, will be invited to participate in this trial. Once enrolled, participants will complete 4 weeks (12 sessions) of supervised high intensity interval training (HIIT). On completion of the supervised phase, both groups will be provided with written recommendations and verbally encouraged to achieve three HIIT sessions per week, or equivalent exercise that meets the exercise oncology guidelines. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive 12 months of peer support, or no peer support (control). Primary and secondary outcomes will be assessed at baseline, after the 4-week supervised HIIT phase and at 3-, 6- and 12-months. Primary outcomes will include accelerometry-derived MVPA and prescribed HIIT session adherence; whilst secondary outcomes will include cardiorespiratory fitness ([Formula: see text]), body composition, quality of life and select cytokines, myokines and inflammatory markers. Random effects mixed modelling will be used to compare mean changes in outcomes between groups at each time point. A group x time interaction will be used to formally test for differences between groups (alpha =0.05); utilising intention-to-treat analyses. DISCUSSION: If successful, peer support may be proposed, adopted and implemented as a strategy to encourage cancer survivors to maintain exercise beyond the duration of a short-term, supervised intervention. A peer support-exercise model has the long-term potential to reduce comorbidities, improve physical and mental wellbeing, and significantly reduce the burden of disease in cancer survivors. ETHICS: Human Research Ethics Committee of Bellberry Ltd. (#2015-12-840). TRIAL REGISTRATION: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry 12618001855213 . Retrospectively registered 14 November 2018. Trial registration includes all components of the WHO Trial Registration Data Set, as recommended by the ICMJE

Getting people more active is key to better health: here are 8 areas for investment

First paragraph: Africa is facing an increasing burden of noncommunicable diseases. The lack of physical activity is a risk factor for most of them.https://theconversation.com/getting-people-more-active-is-key-to-better-health-here-are-8-areas-for-investment-14955