Health-enhancing physical activity and associated factors in a Spanish population.

OBJECTIVES: This study describes the prevalence of health-enhancing physical activity and leisure-time physical activity in a Spanish sample and identifies the characteristics of the physically active and inactive populations. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. METHODS: A random sample of 1595 adults (18-70 years old) living in Catalonia, Spain were assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (short version) and categorised according to their physical activity levels. The independent associations between physical activity levels and socio-demographic and health-related variables were investigated. RESULTS: Seventy-seven percent of the population engaged in health-enhancing physical activity. Being a young adult (odds ratio=2.0; 95% confidence interval=1.25-3.21) and having a normal weight (odds ratio=1.46; 95% confidence interval=1.04-2.03) were positively associated with a high health-enhancing physical activity level. Living in a medium-sized town (odds ratio=1.60; 95% confidence interval=1.09-2.35) was positively associated with a moderate health-enhancing physical activity level, whereas being male (odds ratio=0.72; 95% confidence interval=0.53-0.96) odds ratio a middle-aged adult (odds ratio=0.67; 95% confidence interval=0.46-0.97) was negatively associated with a moderate health-enhancing physical activity level. Regarding leisure-time physical activity, 16.1% of the participants were active, 28.3% were lightly active and 55.6% were sedentary. Being male, being a non-smoker, having a normal weight and living with a partner increased the odds of engaging in leisure-time physical activity. CONCLUSIONS: Engaging in health-enhancing physical activity is common but not during leisure time, as concluded based on a representative sample of adults from Catalonia, Spain. Being a young adult, having a normal weight odds ratio living in a medium-sized town was positively associated with a high health-enhancing physical activity level, whereas being male odds ratio a middle-aged adult was negatively associated with a moderate health-enhancing physical activity level.

Evaluación a medio plazo de una intervención educativa en hábitos alimentarios y de actividad física en escolares: estudio Avall 2 / Medium-term evaluation of an educational intervention on dietary and physical exercise habits in schoolchildren: The Avall 2 study

Objetivo Determinar si los beneficios observados en alimentación, actividad física e índice de masa corporal se mantenían a los 2 años de haber finalizado la intervención educativa. Material y método Estudio longitudinal experimental de 4 años de duración, aleatorizado por conglomerados, para evaluar un programa de intervención dirigido a escolares de primer curso de educación primaria de las escuelas de Granollers. La intervención consistió en promover hábitos alimentarios saludables y potenciar la actividad física mediante la pedagogía educativa Investigación, Visión, Acción y Cambio (IVAC) aplicada a lo largo de 2 cursos escolares (2006-2008). Se determinó in situ el peso y la talla de cada niño, y las familias autocompletaron una encuesta de actividad física y alimentación en el 2006, 2008 y 2010.ResultadosEn el 2010 se observó un mayor incremento del índice de masa corporal de los escolares del grupo control (2,84±0,22 vs 1,96±0,163 kg/m2, p<0,001). La prevalencia de escolares con sobrepeso y obesidad aumentó respectivamente en un 8 y un 0,5% en el grupo control, mientras que en el grupo intervención se incrementó la prevalencia de sobrepeso (5,3%) y se redujo la de obesidad (3,6%). La prevalencia de escolares con exceso de peso aumentó en un 8,5% en el grupo control y en un 1,8% en el de intervención. A los 2 años de finalizar la intervención educativa se mantuvo la reducción del incremento del índice de masa corporal, independientemente del sexo, la procedencia, la obesidad materna y el nivel de estudios de los progenitores. Conclusiones La intervención educativa mediante el empleo del método pedagógico IVAC ayuda a contener el actual incremento de obesidad infantil (AU)

Objective To assess whether the benefits seen in nutrition, physical activity and body mass index were maintained at 2 years of completion of the educational intervention. Material and methods An experimental, longitudinal, 4-year, two-arm, parallel study with cluster randomization to assess an intervention program aimed at children in their first year of primary schooling attending schools in the city of Granollers. Intervention consisted of promoting healthy dietary habits and increasing physical activity through the educational pedagogy Investigation, Vision, Action and Change (IVAC), applied over 2 school years (2006-2008). Weight and height of each child were measured in situ, and families self-completed a physical activity survey and the Krece Plus quick test in 2006, 2008, and 2010.ResultsA greater increase in body mass index was seen in 2010 in children from the control group (2.84±0.22 vs 1.96±0.163kg/m2, <0.001). Prevalence of overweight and obesity increased by 8% and 0.5%, respectively in schoolchildren in the control group, while the intervention group showed a 5.3% increase in prevalence of overweight and a 3.6% decrease in prevalence of obesity. Prevalence of excess weight therefore increased by 8.5% in the control group and by 1.8% in the intervention group. Reduction in body mass index increase was maintained 2 years after completion of educational intervention regardless of sex, origin, maternal obesity, and educational level of parents. Conclusions These results confirm that school-based interventions may help contain the current increase in childhood obesity (AU)

Medium-term evaluation of an educational intervention on dietary and physical exercise habits in schoolchildren: the Avall 2 study.

OBJECTIVE: To assess whether the benefits seen in nutrition, physical activity. and body mass index were maintained at 2 years of completion of the educational intervention. MATERIAL AND METHODS: An experimental, longitudinal, 4-year, two-arm, parallel study with cluster randomization to assess an intervention program aimed at children in their first year of primary schooling attending schools in the city of Granollers. Intervention consisted of promoting healthy dietary habits and increasing physical activity through the educational pedagogy Investigation, Vision, Action and Change (IVAC), applied over 2 school years (2006-2008). Weight and height of each child wee measured in situ, and families self-completed a physical activity survey and the Krece Plus quick test in 2006, 2008, and 2010. RESULTS: A greater increase in body mass index was seen in 2010 in children from the control group (2.84 ± 0.22 vs 1.96 ± 0.163 kg/m(2), <.001). Prevalence of overweight and obesity increased by 8% and 0.5% respectively in schoolchildren in the control group, while the intervention group showed a 5.3% increase in prevalence of overweight and a 3.6%decrease in prevalence of obesity. Prevalence of excess weight therefore increased by 8.5% in the control group and by 1.8% in the intervention group. Reduction in body mass indexincrease was maintained 2 years after completion of educational intervention regardless of sex, origin, maternal obesity, and educational level of parents. CONCLUSIONS: These results confirm that school-based interventions may help contain the current increase in childhood obesity.

Assessment of a school-based intervention in eating habits and physical activity in school children: the AVall study.

BACKGROUND: Obesity has become a global public health problem, which also affects children. It has been proposed that the educational interventions during childhood could be a key strategy in the prevention of obesity. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of an intervention on food habits and physical activity in school children. METHODS: A 2-year cluster-randomised prospective study with two parallel arms was used to evaluate an intervention programme in children in their first year of primary schooling (5-6 years of age) in schools in the city of Granollers. The intervention consisted of the promotion of healthy eating habits and physical activity by means of the educational methodology Investigation, Vision, Action and Change (IVAC). At the beginning and at the end of the study (2006 and 2008) the weight and height of each child was measured in situ, while the families were given a self-report physical activity questionnaire and the Krece Plus quick test. RESULTS: Two years after the beginning of the study, the body mass index of the children in the control group was 0.8 kg/m(2) higher than that of the intervention schools. The intervention reduced by 62% the prevalence of overweight children. Similarly, the proportion of children that ate a second piece of fruit and took part in an after-school physical activity increased in the intervention group. In the control group, the weekly consumption of fish was reduced. CONCLUSIONS: The educational intervention in healthy eating habits and physical activity in the school could contribute to lessen the current increase in child obesity.

Sociodemographic risk factors associated with metabolic syndrome in a Mediterranean population.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the sociodemographic risk factors associated with metabolic syndrome (MetS) in the Mediterranean population of Catalonia, Spain. DESIGN AND SETTING: Data from the cross-sectional, population-based 2002-2003 Health Survey of Catalonia were analysed. The survey used a structured questionnaire to collect information on demographics, lifestyle and medical history. In a sub-sample of the original survey population anthropometrics and blood pressure were measured and blood samples were taken to determine HDL cholesterol, TAG and fasting glucose. SUBJECTS: The analysis included the 1,104 individuals aged 18-74 years from this sub-sample who had complete information on all variables necessary to define MetS using the National Cholesterol Education Program's Adult Treatment Panel III (ATP III) and the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) criteria. RESULTS: MetS prevalence was 28.5 % and 24.8 % according to IDF and ATP III criteria, respectively. MetS was significantly (P = 0.05) more common in males than females. MetS prevalence increased significantly (P<0.001) with age and degree of adiposity and as social class decreased. In general, MetS prevalence decreased as physical activity increased, which was significant (P = 0.0253) when applying ATP III criteria. After taking into account important confounders, MetS prevalence was significantly positively associated with male gender, age, BMI, physical inactivity and lower social class. Smoking status, marital status and working situation were not independently associated with MetS. CONCLUSIONS: Age, sex, degree of adiposity, physical activity and social class are the sociodemographic risk factors independently associated with MetS in this Mediterranean population. Understanding which factors predict MetS is important considering likely increasing MetS trends, and is useful for determining public health strategies.

[Iron deficiency and iron overload in an adult population in Catalonia, Spain]. / Déficit y sobrecarga de hierro en la población adulta de Cataluña.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: To ascertain the frequency of iron deficiency and iron overload in an adult Catalan population. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: Multiple iron measurements, including transferrin saturation (TS) and serum ferritin (SF), were performed in a representative sample of 1,296 adults. RESULTS: The prevalence of iron deficiency was 5.6% (95% CI, 4.4 to 6.9)(SF below 12 microg/l), and 9.3% (95% CI, 7.7 to 10.9) had an iron overload(SF above 300 microg/l in men and SF above 200 microg/l in women). Iron deficiency was especially frequent in women 50 years old or younger (14.8%; 95% CI, 11.4 to 18.1),while in men of the same age it was 1.1% (95% CI, 0.1 to 2.1), yet 11.7% (95% CI, 8.7 to 14.7) had iron overload. In the population over 50 years there was an iron deficiency in 0.9% (95% CI, 0.0 to 1.8), and an iron overload in 15.1% (95% CI, 11.7 to 18.4). 1.6% (95% CI, 0.9-2.3) of all population and 3.9% (1.4-6.4) of men older than 50 years had an SF above 500 microg/l. CONCLUSIONS: Iron overload is more prevalent than iron deficiency in Catalonia, particularly in men and people over 50 years. The causes and effects of the disorder should be investigated in order to carry out corrective measures in the future.

Actividad física. Evaluación de los objetivos del Plan de Salud de Cataluña para el año 2000 / Physical activity. Evaluation of the objectives of the Health Plan for Catalonia for the year 2000

Fundamento y objetivo: La falta de actividad física se considera un factor de riesgo para la salud y por este motivo se incluyó en el Plan de Salud de Cataluña como una de las intervenciones prioritarias. El objetivo de este trabajo fue evaluar el grado de consecución de los objetivos del Plan de Salud de Cataluña para el año 2000 en relación con la actividad física. Población y método: A través de la Encuesta de salud y el examen de salud efectuados en el año 2002 en Cataluña se obtuvieron los indicadores de prevalencia necesarios para evaluar cada uno de los objetivos en la población de entre 18 y 64 años. Resultados: La prevalencia de adultos que caminan más de 30 minutos al día no ha aumentado y se halla en el 60,5%. Se observa un aumento del 19,5% en la prevalencia de adultos que practican ejercicio físico durante el tiempo libre hasta alcanzar el 49%. La prevalencia de personas absolutamente sedentarias ha disminuido hasta el 21,7%. La prevalencia de personas que manifiestan realizar actividades vigorosas muestra un aumento muy discreto. No se han producido cambios en el porcentaje de personas menores de 35 años que han abandonado la práctica de ejercicio físico durante el tiempo libre (77,8%). Conclusiones: Los resultados obtenidos indican unos patrones de actividad física ligeramente más saludables que en años anteriores aunque únicamente se han alcanzado de forma parcial dos de los cinco objetivos (AU)

Background and objective: The lack of physical activity is widely considered a risk factor. Therefore, Catalonian Health Plan 2000 included physical activity as a priority intervention. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the degree of achievement of the objectives related to physical activity that were established in the Catalonian Health Plan for the year 2000. Subjects and method: We obtained the appropriate prevalence indicators to evaluate each objective in a population group-age (18-64) by means of the Catalan Health Survey and the Catalan Health Exam made in 2002 in Catalonia. Results: The prevalence of adults that walk more than 30 minutes per day has not increased (60.5%). However, we have noticed a marked rise of adults that make physical exercice during their free time (49%). In the other hand, the prevalence of absolutely sedentary people has diminished a 19,6% arriving to 21,7%. In addition the proportion of people who declare to make vigorous activities shown an slight increase of 16.9%. There is no changes about the percentage of people younger than 35 who has quit making physical exercise during leisure time (77.8%). Conclusions: The results show physical activity patterns more healthy than previous years. However, only 2 of the 5 objectives designed have been completely achieved (AU)