Physical Sports Activity during Leisure Time and Dietary Intake of Foods and Nutrients in a Large Spanish Cohort

Abstract

This study evaluated the dietary pattern of foods and nutrients according to levels of vigorous leisure time physical activity (PA) assessed at recruitment within the Spanish cohort of the European Prospective Investigation on Cancer (EPIC) study (37,287 healthy volunteers with complete information). We used a validated PA questionnaire (PAQ) to measure the weekly frequency and duration of different kinds of sport activities. For dietary assessment, we used a validated diet history questionnaire that included all items consumed with a frequency of at least twice a month. We tested differences in food and nutrient intake according to PA duration by means of both an analysis of variance and an analysis of covariance adjusted for confounding factors. Linear increases or decreases in food and nutrient intake across PA levels were tested by means of a regression analysis. Only 11% of men and 6% of women performed at least 3 hours/week of intense PA, which is similar to current recommendations. Overall, main nutrient and total energy intakes were similar across different PA levels (<2% change in total energy intake between extreme PA categories). However, the intake of some foods and vitamins did significantly (p .05) increase as PA increased. The average gender-weighted percentage change in the intake of food and vitamins increased when moving from the lowest levels of PA to the highest. There was an increase in the intake of the following: 15.9% in vegetables, 6.7% in fruit, 9% in fish, 5.6% in dairy products, 10% in vitamin C, 5.9% in vitamin E, 7.2% in retinol, 19.7% in total carotene, 40.1% in alpha-carotene, 20.4% in beta-carotene, 11.2% in licopene, and 26.1% in lutein. BMI, which was above average for the cohort (mean +/- SD: 28.4 +/- 4.2), decreased steadily when PA increased. To sum up, in this large Spanish cohort, the differences in dietary intake relative to levels of PA were not found either in the amount of total energy consumed nor in the number of main macronutrients but rather in the intake of certain foods which, while having very little or moderate caloric content, are very rich in highly bioactive elements such as vitamins and provitamins.

Concern over health effects of air pollution is associated to NO2 in seven European cities

“…Participants who were physically active may be inhaling more pollution because of their increased breathing, thus may be more worried about the health effects of air pollution (Dons et al 2017). They may also be more health-conscious in general, hence more worried about air pollution (Tormo et al 2003). In multiple other studies, current smoking behaviour was identified as a determinant in the association between air pollution at home and concern scores.…”

Inatividade física no lazer de adultos e fatores associados

“…10,16,20 Leisure-time physical activity was associated to higher intake of fruits, fruit juices, legumes, and green vegetables, lower intake of saturated and total fat 3,9,10,15,21 and more healthy eating habits seen during breakfast. 10,16 The findings of the present study are consistent with data of other population-based studies conducted through phone surveys and household interviews.…”

The influence of a behavior modification interventional program on body mass index in obese adolescents

“…18 Thus, the importance and the urgency of interventional measures for changing the lifestyle behaviors associated with obesity is evident in numerous studies. 19,20 In Harris et al's study (1980), in a long-term weight control program, it was found that few participants lost large amounts of weight. 21 One of the reported programs for behavior modification involved eight female participants who performed exercises in 20-minute sessions, 3 sessions a week, for 4e5 weeks, and thereafter performed exercises every other week for 3 months, and experienced 17.2 kg weight loss on average.…”