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Long-period accelerometer monitoring shows the role of physical activity in overweight and obesity

International Journal of Obesity volume 29, pages 502–508 (2005)Cite this article

Abstract

CONTEXT:

Physical activity (PA) plays an important role in obesity. A new accelerometer has been developed to assess total energy expenditure as well as PA.

OBJECTIVE:

To investigate the association of PA with overweight and obesity in Japanese men and women, a large cross-sectional study was performed using a single-axis accelerometer.

DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS:

Population-based cross-sectional study of Japanese 18–84 y of age. Height, body weight and PA were measured in 400 male and 388 female Japanese volunteers from 1999 to 2000. The outcome measurements were overweight and obesity, which are defined as a body mass index ≥25 kg/m2. PA was measured for 1 to 4 weeks and was then categorized into three activity levels, which were defined as light, moderate and vigorous PA.

RESULTS:

Prevalence of overweight and obesity was 22.3%. Number of steps and time spent in moderate and vigorous PA per day were lower in overweight and obese individuals. No difference was found in time spent in light PA. Individuals who are in the 4th and 5th quintile of moderate and vigorous PA showed a significantly lower body mass index. When odd ratios (ORs) of overweight and obesity estimated by logistic regression were used as effect measures, overweight and obesity were negatively associated with vigorous PA (ORs=0.91).

CONCLUSION:

These results indicate that overweight and obese individuals have a lower step rate and are spending less time for moderate to vigorous PA. Participation in vigorous PA is an important predictor of overweight and obesity.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the Health Sciences Research Grants from the Japanese Ministry of Health Labor and Welfare. Mayumi Yoshioka and Hiroyuki Higuchi were supported in part by Research resident from the Japan Foundation for Aging and Health. We are indebted to subjects and member of projects who participated and helped in obtaining these data; to Miss Ikuko Shiarahashi for obtaining data; to Mrs Yoshiko Hohoya for secretarial help; and to Dr Eric E Snyder for helpful comments on the manuscript. YH, HM, YY, MS and HT participated in the development of the study protocol and supervised its implementation. MY, MA, TY, HH, YH, HM and HT participated to the data collection at the field site. MY, JS and HT analyzed and interpreted the results and wrote the manuscript, which was reviewed and approved by all authors. No author had a financial or personal conflict of interest related to this research or its source of funding.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Sport and Health Science, Fukuoka University, Fukuoka, Japan

    M Yoshioka, M Ayabe, T Yahiro, H Higuchi, M Shindo & H Tanaka

  2. Molecular Endocrinology and Oncology Research Center, Laval University Medical Center (CHUL) and Laval University, Quebec, Canada

    M Yoshioka & J St-Amand

  3. Department of Community Health Science, Saga Medical School, Saga, Japan

    Y Higaki

  4. Department of Oral Health Science, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan

    H Miyazaki

  5. National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Kanoya, Kagoshima, Japan

    Y Yoshitake

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  1. M Yoshioka
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Correspondence to M Yoshioka.

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Yoshioka, M., Ayabe, M., Yahiro, T. et al. Long-period accelerometer monitoring shows the role of physical activity in overweight and obesity. Int J Obes 29, 502–508 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0802891

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