Physical inactivity from youth to adulthood and adult cardiometabolic risk profile.

Adults with a low physical activity (PA) level are at increased risk for cardiometabolic diseases, but little is known on the association between physical inactivity since youth and cardiometabolic health in adulthood. We investigated the association of persistent physical inactivity from youth to adulthood with adult cardiometabolic risk factors. Data were drawn from the ongoing Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study with seven follow-ups between 1980 and 2011 (baseline age 3-18 years, n = 1961). Physical activity data from a standardized questionnaire was expressed as a PA-index. Using the PA-index, four groups were formed: 1)persistently physically inactive (n = 246), 2)decreasingly active (n = 305), 3)increasingly active (n = 328), and 4)persistently active individuals (n = 1082). Adulthood cardiometabolic risk indicators included waist circumference, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, and fasting lipids, insulin, and glucose. Clustered cardiometabolic risk was defined using established criteria for metabolic syndrome. Persistently physically inactive group was used as a reference. Compared to the persistently physically inactive group, those who were persistently active had lower risk for adult clustered cardiometabolic risk (RR = 0.67;CI95% = 0.53-0.84; Harmonized criteria), obesity (BMI > 30 kg/m2, RR = 0.76;CI95% = 0.59-0.98), high waist circumference (RR = 0.82;CI95% = 0.69-0.98), and high triglyceride (RR = 0.60;CI95% = 0.47-0.75), insulin (RR = 0.58;CI95% = 0.46-0.74) and glucose (RR = 0.77;CI95% = 0.62-0.96) concentrations as well as low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC) concentration (RR = 0.78;CI95% = 0.66-0.93). Comparable results were found when persistently physically inactive individuals were compared with those who increased PA. The results remained essentially similar after adjustment for education, diet, smoking, and BMI. Persistently physically inactive lifestyle since youth is associated with an unfavorable cardiometabolic risk profile in adulthood. Importantly, even minor increase in PA lowers the cardiometabolic risk.

Associations Between Trajectories of Leisure-Time Physical Activity and Television Viewing Time Across Adulthood: The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to examine trajectories of leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) and television-viewing (TV) time and their associations in adults over 10 years. METHODS: The sample comprised 2934 participants (men, 46.0%) aged 24-39 years in 2001 and they were followed up for 10 years. LTPA and TV time were assessed using self-report questionnaires in 2001, 2007, and 2011. Longitudinal LTPA and TV-time trajectories and their interactions were analyzed with mixture modeling. RESULTS: Three LTPA (persistently highly active, 15.8%; persistently moderately active, 60.8%; and persistently low active, 23.5%) and 4 TV time (consistently low, 38.6%; consistently moderate, 48.2%; consistently high, 11.7%; and consistently very high, 1.5%) trajectory classes were identified. Persistently highly active women had a lower probability of consistently high TV time than persistently low-active women (P = .02), whereas men who were persistently highly active had a higher probability of consistently moderate TV time and a lower probability of consistently low TV time than their persistently low-active counterparts (P = .03 and P = .01, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Maintaining high LTPA levels were accompanied by less TV over time in women, but not in men. The associations were partially explained by education, body mass index, and smoking.

Long-term determinants of changes in television viewing time in adults: Prospective analyses from the Young Finns Study.

PURPOSE: The long-term effects of sociodemographic and health characteristics on television viewing (TV) time changes have not been identified in adulthood. We aimed to examine the modifiable and non-modifiable determinants of changes in TV-time in young adults over 10 years. METHODS: Participants (N = 2929) aged 24-39 years were recruited between 2001 and 2011 from the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study. Data were collected using questionnaires and a medical examination. The determinants of changes in TV-time were estimated using latent growth modeling for men and women separately. RESULTS: For men, inverse associations with initial levels of TV-time were observed for students becoming employed and already has children, and direct associations were observed for both those who stayed a smoker and those who stayed overweight/obese. Increasing attention to health habits was inversely associated with a slope of TV-time, whereas age and becoming unemployed were positively associated with the slope of TV-time. For women, inverse associations with the levels of TV-time were found for age, staying in non-manual work, and paying consistently high and increasing attention to health habits, and direct associations were found for staying unemployed, smoking and overweight/obese, and becoming employed, single and non-smoking. Increasing physical activity, becoming employed, motherhood, and normal weight were inversely associated with the slope of TV-time, whereas age and staying in non-manual work were positively associated with the slope of TV-time. CONCLUSIONS: This suggests several gender-specific determinants of changes in TV-time that can help identify potential targets for interventions to prevent excessive TV-time in adulthood.

Physical Inactivity from Youth to Adulthood and Risk of Impaired Glucose Metabolism.

INTRODUCTION: Physical activity (PA) is important in the prevention and treatment of impaired glucose metabolism. However, association of physical inactivity during the transition between childhood and adulthood with glucose metabolism is unknown. Therefore, we studied the association of persistent physical inactivity since childhood with glucose metabolism in adulthood. METHODS: Data were drawn from the ongoing, Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study with repeated follow-ups between 1980 and 2011 (baseline age, 3-18 yr; n = 3596). Impaired glucose metabolism was defined as having impaired fasting glucose (6.1-6.9 mmol·L) or type 2 diabetes in adulthood. Leisure-time PA habits were repeatedly collected with a standardized questionnaire and expressed as a PA Index. Using PA Index, four groups were formed (n = 2000): 1) persistently low PA, 2) decreasingly active, 3) increasingly active, and 4) persistently active subjects. Poisson regression model was used to examine the association between PA groups and impaired glucose metabolism. RESULTS: The proportion of the sample with impaired glucose metabolism was 16.1% in individuals with persistently low PA, 14.5% in decreasingly active, 6.8% in increasingly active, and 11.1% in persistently active. Compared with individuals with persistently low PA, age and sex-adjusted risk for impaired glucose metabolism were lower in those who increased PA (relative risk [RR], 0.47; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.29-0.76) and in those who were persistently active (RR, 0.70; 95% CI, 0.51-0.97), but similar in those who decreased PA (RR, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.66-1.36). CONCLUSIONS: Persistently physically inactive lifestyle from youth to adulthood is associated with increased risk of impaired glucose metabolism in adulthood. Importantly, a moderate increase in PA lowered the risk. The results highlight the importance of avoiding physically inactive lifestyle at all stages of life.

Tracking of Television Viewing Time during Adulthood: The Young Finns Study.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to investigate the tracking of television viewing (TV) time as an indicator of sedentary behavior among adults for a period of 25 yr. METHODS: A random sample of 1601 subjects (740 men) age 18, 21, and 24 yr participated in the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study in 1986. TV time during leisure time was measured with a single self-report question at baseline and in 2001, 2007, and 2011. Tracking of TV time was analyzed using Spearman rank correlations and simplex models. Level and change of TV time were examined using linear growth modeling. RESULTS: The 4- and 6-yr integrated TV time stability coefficients, adjusted for measurement errors, were ≥0.60 in adulthood and quite similar for both men and women. The stability coefficients tended to decline as the time interval increased. The stability of the indirect estimation of TV time for a 25-yr period was moderately or highly significant for both genders in most age groups. Younger age, but not gender, was found to be associated with a higher initial level of TV time. Male gender and older age were found to be significantly associated with the slope of TV time. CONCLUSION: The stability of TV time is predominantly moderate to high during adulthood and varies somewhat by age and gender.

[Health hazards of physical inactivity]. / Vähäisen liikkumisen terveyshaitat.

Obesity and non-communicable diseases and related costs increase with physical inactivity. In addition to the lack of recreational exercise, a sedentary lifestyle also seems to have a negative effect of health, independently of other lifestyle and risks. New means, as well as multidisciplinary and multiprofessional collaboration, are required in order to improve health and well-being on the population level and to reduce health-related costs. New, more effective operational models are also needed in health communication in order to achieve the desired and more permanent results.

Television viewing and fatty liver in early midlife. The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study.

INTRODUCTION: Both sedentary behaviour and fatty liver are associated with increased risk of obesity and non-communicable diseases, but their relationship remains unknown. We investigated the relationship of television (TV) viewing time with serum gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) and Fatty Liver Index (FLI), and ultrasonographically assessed liver fat. METHODS: A total of 1,367 adults of the population-based Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns study (748 women, 619 men, aged 34-49 years) had fasting serum GGT, triglycerides, weight, height, and waist circumference, and self-reported TV time data from 2001, 2007, and 2011. Changes in GGT and FLI, and liver ultrasound images in 2011 were studied in groups with constantly low (≤ 1 h/d), moderate (1-3 h/d), or high (≥ 3 h/d) daily TV time, and in groups with ≥ 1 hour increase/decrease in daily TV time between 2001 and 2011. RESULTS: Constantly high TV time was associated with higher GGT and FLI (P < 0.02 in both), and 2.3-fold (95% CI 1.2-4.5) increased risk of fatty liver regardless of age, sex, leisure-time and occupational physical activity, energy intake, diet composition, alcohol use, sleep duration, socioeconomic status, and smoking. Adjustment for BMI partly attenuated the associations. CONCLUSIONS: High TV viewing increases fatty liver risk. It may be one mechanism linking sedentary behaviour with increased cardiometabolic disease risks.

Exploring causality between TV viewing and weight change in young and middle-aged adults. The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns study.

BACKGROUND: Television viewing time (TV time) is associated with increased weight and obesity, but it is unclear whether this relation is causal. METHODS AND RESULTS: We evaluated changes in TV time, waist circumference (waist) and body mass index (BMI) in participants of the population-based Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns study (761 women, 626 men aged 33-50 years in 2011). Waist and BMI were measured, and TV time was self-reported in 2001, 2007, and 2011. Changes in waist and BMI between 2001 and 2011 were studied a) for the whole group, b) in groups with constantly low (≤ 1 h/d), moderate (1-3 h/d), or high (≥ 3 h/d) TV time, and c) in groups with ≥ 1 hour in-/decrease in daily TV time between 2001 and 2011. BMIs in 1986 were also evaluated. We explored the causal relationship of TV time with waist and BMI by classical temporality criterion and recently introduced causal-discovery algorithms (pairwise causality measures). Both methods supported the hypothesis that TV time is causative to weight gain, and no evidence was found for reverse or bidirectional causality. Constantly low TV time was associated with less pronounced increase in waist and BMI, and waist and BMI increase was lower with decreased TV time (P<0.05). The increase in waist and BMI was at least 2-fold in the high TV time group compared to the low TV time group (P<0.05). Adjustment for age, sex, BMI/waist in 2001, physical activity, energy intake, or smoking did not change the results. CONCLUSIONS: In young and middle-aged adults, constantly high TV time is temporally antecedent to BMI and waist increase.

Association of fitness with vascular intima-media thickness and elasticity in adolescence.

OBJECTIVES: Vascular intima-media thickness (IMT) and elasticity are surrogate markers of atherosclerosis. Data on the effect of cardiorespiratory fitness on these measures of vascular health in adolescence are scarce. The aim was to examine the association of fitness with aortic and carotid artery IMT and elasticity in adolescents. METHODS: Aortic (n = 449) and carotid (n = 467) IMT and elasticity were measured ultrasonographically in 17-year-old adolescents participating in a prospective, longitudinal atherosclerosis prevention study (Special Turku Coronary Risk Factor Intervention Project). Distensibility and Young's elastic modulus (YEM) were used as measures of arterial elasticity. Cardiorespiratory fitness (maximum oxygen uptake, mL/kg/min) was measured with a maximal cycle ergometer test. Data on fitness were available for 341 of adolescents with aortic and 355 with carotid ultrasound measures. RESULTS: Fitness was inversely associated with aortic IMT (ß[SE] = -0.0029[0.0013]; P = .031) and YEM (ß[SE] = -0.012[0.0053]; P = .025) after adjusting for gender, physical activity, high-density lipoprotein/total cholesterol, triglycerides, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, homeostasis model of assessment-insulin resistance, BMI, systolic blood pressure, and smoking. Risk of having low aortic distensibility (≤10th percentile) decreased with increasing fitness (odds ratio = 0.89, 95% confidence interval 0.82-0.98); P = .014). The increase in aortic IMT and YEM between ages 11 and 17 years was smaller in adolescents who were fit at age 17 compared with adolescents who had the lowest fitness level (P for IMT = .015, P for YEM = .0072). Fitness was not associated with carotid IMT or elasticity. Lifestyle counseling given in the Special Turku Coronary Risk Factor Intervention Project was not associated with fitness. CONCLUSIONS: Fitness was favorably associated with aortic IMT and elasticity in adolescents. No association of fitness with the respective carotid indices was found. These data suggest that fitness in part enhances vascular health in healthy adolescents.

[Reduced sitting time improves health]. / Istu ja pala! Onko istuminen uusi terveysuhka?

The health-promoting effects of physical exercise are scientifically proven, but the health risks of sitting still remain rather poorly known. Technological development of the society will by no means cut down sitting. Should too much sitting be considered as one of the independent factors increasing the risk of metabolic diseases and its reduction as a health-promoting measure? Innovative solutions made possible by the new technology to cut down on sitting and to increase physical activity may prove to be important future tools for promoting health.