U-shaped association between body mass index and psychological distress in a population sample of 114,218 British adults

U-shaped association between body mass index and psychological distress in a population sample of 114,218 British adult

Screen-based sedentary behavior, physical activity, and muscle strength in the English longitudinal study of ageing

Background: Sarcopenia is associated with loss of independence and ill-health in the elderly although the causes remain poorly understood. We examined the association between two screen-based leisure time sedentary activities (daily TV viewing time and internet use) and muscle strength. Methods and Results: We studied 6228 men and women (aged 64.969.1 yrs) from wave 4 (2008-09) of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing, a prospective study of community dwelling older adults. Muscle strength was assessed by a hand grip test and the time required to complete five chair rises. TV viewing and internet usage were inversely associated with one another. Participants viewing TV $6hrs/d had lower grip strength (Men, B =21.20 kg, 95% CI, 22.26, 20.14; Women, 20.75 kg, 95% CI, 21.48, 20.03) in comparison to ,2hrs/d TV, after adjustment for age, physical activity, smoking, alcohol, chronic disease, disability, depressive symptoms, social status, and body mass index. In contrast, internet use was associated with higher grip strength (Men, B = 2.43 kg, 95% CI, 1.74, 3.12; Women, 0.76 kg, 95% CI, 0.32, 1.20). These associations persisted after mutual adjustment for both types of sedentary behaviour. Conclusions: In older adults, the association between sedentary activities and physical function is context specific (TV viewing vs. computer use). Adverse effects of TV viewing might reflect the prolonged sedentary nature of this behavior

Relative proportion of vigorous physical activity, total volume of moderate to vigorous activity, and body mass index in youth: the Millennium Cohort Study

The present physical activity guidelines suggest that when the overall activity energy expenditure is held constant, moderate and vigorous intensity activities (MVPA) provide equivalent health benefits. We explored associations between vigorous physical activity on body mass index whilst controlling for volume of MVPA. In a longitudinal study with 7 years follow up (n=4,770; aged 7 yrs old at baseline), physical activity was measured objectively at baseline. Body mass index (BMI) was measured at baseline and follow up. Vigorous activity was expressed as the percentage of total MVPA. Participants in the highest vigorous activity tertile at baseline were at lower odds (odds ratio=0.70; 95% CI, 0.55, 0.88) of overweight /obesity at follow up compared with those in the lowest vigorous activity tertile after adjustment for total volume of MVPA, BMI at baseline, sex, ethnicity, and social status. The results suggest vigorous activity, regardless of volume, is important in preventing excessive weight gain in young people

Psychological Distress and Risk of Accidental Death in the General Population.

SB is supported by grants from the European Research Council and the UK Medical Research Council/Alcohol Research UK.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Wolters Kluwer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/EDE.000000000000054

Dose-response association between step count and cardiovascular disease risk markers in middle aged adults

Several step-based daily targets have been widely circulated, but there is a lack of empirical population-based evidence to support such guidance. We examined dose-response associations between step count and classical CVD risk markers (glycated haemoglobin, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, C-reactive protein) in 4,665 adults (aged 46 yr; 51.4% female) in a cross-sectional study. Step counts were measured from a thigh mounted accelerometer (activPAL) worn over 7 days. The shape of the dose response curve for most risk markers was 'L-shaped', with linear risk reduction up to around 10,000 steps a day. Controlling for stepping intensity did not materially alter our results

Age-related functional reorganization, structural changes, and preserved cognition.

Although healthy aging is associated with general cognitive decline, there is considerable variability in the extent to which cognitive functions decline or are preserved. Preserved cognitive function in the context of age-related neuroanatomical and functional changes, has been attributed to compensatory mechanisms. However, the existing sparse evidence is largely focused on functions associated with the frontal cortex, leaving open the question of how wider age-related brain changes relate to compensation. We evaluated relationships between age-related neural and functional changes in the context of preserved cognitive function by combining measures of structure, function, and cognitive performance during spoken language comprehension using a paradigm that does not involve an explicit task. We used a graph theoretical approach to derive cognitive activation-related functional magnetic resonance imaging networks. Correlating network properties with age, neuroanatomical variations, and behavioral data, we found that decreased gray matter integrity was associated with decreased connectivity within key language regions but increased overall functional connectivity. However, this network reorganization was less efficient, suggesting that engagement of a more distributed network in aging might be triggered by reduced connectivity within specialized networks

The combined association of psychological distress and socioeconomic status with all-cause mortality: a national cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Psychological distress and low socioeconomic status (SES) are recognized risk factors for mortality. The aim of this study was to test whether lower SES amplifies the effect of psychological distress on all-cause mortality. METHODS: We selected 66 518 participants from the Health Survey for England who were 35 years or older, free of cancer and cardiovascular disease at baseline, and living in private households in England from 1994 to 2004. Selection used stratified random sampling, and participants were linked prospectively to mortality records from the Office of National Statistics (mean follow-up, 8.2 years). Psychological distress was measured using the 12-item General Health Questionnaire, and SES was indexed by occupational class. RESULTS: The crude incidence rate of death was 14.49 (95% CI, 14.17-14.81) per 1000 person-years. After adjustment for age and sex, psychological distress and low SES category were associated with increased mortality rates. In a stratified analysis, the association of psychological distress with mortality differed with SES (likelihood ratio test-adjusted P < .001), with the strongest associations being observed in the lowest SES categories. CONCLUSIONS: The detrimental effect of psychological distress on mortality is amplified by low SES category. People in higher SES categories have lower mortality rates even when they report high levels of psychological distress

Associations between alcohol and obesity in more than 100,000 adults in England and Scotland

The objective of this cross-sectional study was to clarify the association between alcohol and obesity using data from 106,182 adults in England and Scotland (46.7% male; 46.9±16.9 years [mean±SD]). Trained interviewers asked participants about alcohol intake. Obesity was defined as body mass index ≥ 30 kg·m-2. Potential confounders included age, sex, smoking, physical activity, longstanding illness, psychological distress, and socioeconomic status. Compared with those who drank at least five times a week, obesity risk was 1.21 (95% confidence interval: 1.15, 1.27) in those who drank one to four times a week, 1.53 (1.43, 1.62) in those who drank one to two times a month, 1.61 (1.52, 1.71) in those who drank less than once every couple of months, 1.34 (1.23, 1.47) in those who were former drinkers, and 1.03 (0.95, 1.11) in those who were never drinkers. Compared with those who drank a harmful volume, obesity risk was 0.78 (0.68, 0.90) in those who drank within guidelines, 0.69 (0.54, 0.88) in former drinkers, and 0.50 (0.40, 0.63) in never drinkers; And, these associations were biased away from the null after adjustment for drinking volume. Abstinence was associated with increased risk of obesity in women. These data suggest that the association between drinking frequency and obesity is bell-shaped, with obesity risk not significantly different in those who drink most often and never drinkers. Drinking volume has a positive confounding effect on the association between drinking frequency and obesity, which may help explain the conflicting findings of other studies

Relationships between exercise, smoking habit and mortality in more than 100,000 adults

Exercise is associated with reduced risks of all-cause, cardiovascular disease (CVD), and cancer mortality; however, the benefits in smokers and ex-smokers are unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate associations between exercise, smoking habit and mortality. Self-reported exercise and smoking, and all-cause, CVD, and cancer mortality were assessed in 106,341 adults in the Health Survey for England and the Scottish Health Survey. There were 9149 deaths from all causes, 2839 from CVD, and 2634 from cancer during 999,948 person-years of follow-up. Greater amounts of exercise were associated with decreases and greater amounts of smoking were associated with increases in the risks of mortality from all causes, CVD and cancer. There was no statistically significant evidence of biological interaction; rather, the relative risks of all-cause mortality were additive. In the subgroup of 26,768 ex-smokers, the all-cause mortality hazard ratio was 0.70 (95% CI: 0.60, 0.80), the CVD mortality hazard ratio was 0.71 (0.55, 092), and the cancer mortality hazard ratio was 0.66 (0.52, 0.84) in those who exercised compared to those who did not. In the subgroup of 28,440 smokers, the all-cause mortality hazard ratio was 0.69 (0.57, 0.83), the CVD mortality hazard ratio was 0.66 (0.45, 0.96), and the cancer mortality hazard ratio was 0.69 (0.51, 0.94) in those who exercised compared to those who did not. Given that an outright ban is unlikely, this study is important because it suggests exercise reduces the risks of all-cause, CVD and cancer mortality by around 30% in smokers and ex-smokers