Prevalence of lifestyle-related chronic diseases among agricultural and non-agricultural workers in ruralareas of Japan: the Shimane CoHRE study

Masayuki Yamasaki; Shozo Yano; Miwako Takeda; Takafumi Abe; Minoru Isomura; Tsuyoshi Hamano; Toru Nabika; Kuninori Shiwaku

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Prevalence of lifestyle-related chronic diseases among agricultural and non-agricultural workers in ruralareas of Japan: the Shimane CoHRE study

VernacularTitle:Prevalence of lifestyle-related chronic diseases among agricultural and non-agricultural workers in ruralareas of Japan: the Shimane CoHRE study
Author: Masayuki YAMASAKI ¹ ; Shozo YANO ² ; Miwako TAKEDA ³ ; Takafumi ABE ⁴ ; Minoru ISOMURA ² ; Tsuyoshi HAMANO ² ; Toru NABIKA ² ; Kuninori SHIWAKU ¹
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1. Faculty of Human Sciences, Shimane University, Japan
2. The Center for Community-based Healthcare Research and Education (CoHRE), Shimane University, Japan
3. Faculty of Medicine, Shimane University, Japan
4. Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Shimane University, Japan
Keywords: agricultural workers; dyslipidemia; hypertension; cross-sectional study
From:Journal of Rural Medicine 2020;15(1):1-7
CountryJapan
Language:English
Abstract: Objective: Engaging in agriculture greatly affects workers’ lifestyles, particularly related to physical activity. This study aimed to clarify the prevalence of lifestyle-related chronic diseases among workers engaging and not engaging in agriculture in rural areas of Japan.Methods: A total of 4,666 consecutive participants aged ≥40 years (1,929 men and 2,737 women) were recruited during health examinations conducted from 2006 to 2014. For analysis, the participants were divided by sex and age into those engaging in agriculture and those not engaging in agriculture.Results: Engaging in agriculture may be contributing with a low prevalence of dyslipidemia, a constitutive factor of metabolic syndrome, in both sexes between the ages of 40 and 64 years. In the elderly aged ≥65 years, engaging in agriculture may influence the low prevalence of hypertension in men. Hypertension, a strong risk factor for stroke and cardiovascular disease, is very frequent among the Japanese elderly and, therefore, engaging in agriculture may have a significant impact on its prevention and control.Conclusion: In rural areas of Japan, engaging in agriculture may contribute to the control of lipid metabolism in middle-aged individuals and blood pressure in the elderly.