Objective: To investigate the associations of obesity and physical activity with cognition in the elderly. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from October 2009 to June 2010 among people aged ≥50 years selected through multistage random cluster sampling in Shanghai. The subjects' body weight, body height, waist circumference and hip circumference were measured to calculate body mass index (BMI) and waist-hip ratio (WHR), and the data on self-reported physical activity level were collected through questionnaire survey. A comprehensive battery of cognitive tests was conducted to assess subjects' cognitive functions, including verbal recall, forward digit span (FDS), backward digit span (BDS), and verbal fluency (VF). General linear model was used to examine the associations of BMI, WHR and physical activity with cognition. Results: A total of 7 913 participants were included, with a median age of 60 years. Age, sex, education level, income level, BMI, WHR and physical activity level were significantly associated with cognitive scores in univariate analysis. After adjusted for age, sex, education level and income level, BMI was no longer significantly associated with cognitive scores in all cognitive functions (all P>0.01). WHR was significantly associated with VF score (P<0.01). Abdominally obese participants had lower VF score than non-abdominally obese participants (P<0.01). Physical activity level was significantly associated with all cognitive functions (P<0.01). Compared with participants with moderate physical activity level, participants with low physical activity level had lower scores in all cognitive functions (P<0.01). Conclusion: Abdominal obesity and low physical activity level were negatively associated with cognition level in the elderly, suggesting that waist circumference control and physical activity might help maintain cognition in the elderly.
Aged ; Body Height ; Body Mass Index ; Body Weight ; China ; Cognition/physiology* ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Exercise ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Obesity ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Waist Circumference ; Waist-Hip Ratio

OBJECTIVETo examine the association between habitual sleep duration and obesity among Chinese adults.

METHODSThe association of sleep duration and obesity was investigated among 7,094 community-dwelling Chinese adults. Sleep duration was self-reported. In this study, obesity was defined as follows: body mass index (BMI) ⋝ 28 kg/m2, waist circumference (WC) ⋝ 85 cm in men and ⋝ 80 cm in women, and percent body fat (%BF) ⋝ 25 in men and ⋝ 35 in women. Logistic and quantile regressions were employed to examine relationships of interest.

RESULTSOverall, 6.42% of the participants reported short sleep durations (< 6 h/d) while 14.71% reported long (⋝ 9 h/d) sleep durations. Long sleepers (⋝ 9 h/d) represented a greater frequency of women with obesity [odds ratio (OR): 1.30; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.02-1.67] and high body fat (1.43, 1.04-1.96) than those who slept 7-8 h/d. An association between long sleep times and higher BMI estimations was found across the 10th-75th percentile of the BMI distribution. Among men, long sleepers (⋝ 9 h/d) presented lower risks of developing abdominal obesity compared with individuals who slept 7-8 h/d (OR = 0.79, 95% CI: 0.44-0.99).

CONCLUSIONOur study suggests that long sleep durations are associated with general obesity in Chinese women but reduced waist circumferences in men. Confirmatory studies are needed to determine the heterogeneous association of sleep time and obesity by gender.

Adipose Tissue ; physiology ; Adult ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Body Mass Index ; China ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Rural Population ; Sleep ; physiology ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Urban Population ; Waist Circumference

PURPOSE: This study was performed to determine the physical and psychological effects of an urban forest-walking program for office workers. For many workers, sedentary lifestyles can lead to low levels of physical activity causing various health problems despite an increased interest in health promotion. METHODS: Fifty four office workers participated in this study. They were assigned to two groups (experimental group and control group) in random order and the experimental group performed 5 weeks of walking exercise based on Information-Motivation-Behavioral skills Model. The data were collected from October to November 2014. SPSS 21.0 was used for the statistical analysis. RESULTS: The results showed that the urban forest walking program had positive effects on the physical activity level (U=65.00, p <.001), health promotion behavior (t= - 2.20, p =.033), and quality of life (t= - 2.42, p =.020). However, there were no statistical differences in depression, waist size, body mass index, blood pressure, or bone density between the groups. CONCLUSION: The current findings of the study suggest the forest-walking program may have positive effects on improving physical activity, health promotion behavior, and quality of life. The program can be used as an effective and efficient strategy for physical and psychological health promotion for office workers.
Adult ; Blood Pressure/physiology ; Body Mass Index ; Body Size ; Bone Density/physiology ; Cities ; Depression/*pathology ; Female ; Forests ; *Health Promotion ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Motor Activity ; *Quality of Life ; Sedentary Lifestyle ; Waist Circumference ; *Walking

PURPOSE: To describe the relationship between the waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) and cardiometabolic risk factors (CMRFs) and to evaluate the validity of WHtR in identifying adolescents with metabolic syndrome. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analyzed data from a pooled population of 4068 adolescents aged 10-19 years from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys conducted between 1998 and 2008. Overweight individuals were defined by body mass index (BMI) ≥85th percentile. Those with at least 2 CMRFs among hypertension, hyperglycemia, hypertriglyceridemia, and decreased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were classified as having multiple CMRFs. RESULTS: WHtR was significantly related to systolic blood pressure, HDL-C, and triglycerides in both non-overweight and overweight adolescents (all p<0.01). Among overweight adolescents, the area under the curve (AUC) for WHtR in identifying multiple CMRFs was significantly greater than that for BMI (p=0.014). Metabolic syndrome was more common in overweight adolescents with a WHtR of ≥0.5 than in those with a WHtR of <0.5 (p<0.001). In non-overweight adolescents, the prevalences of multiple CMRFs (p=0.001) and metabolic syndrome (p<0.001) were higher in those with a WHtR of ≥0.5 than in those with a WHtR of <0.5. Among those without central obesity, the prevalence of multiple CMRFs was higher in those with a WHtR of ≥0.5 than in those with a WHtR of <0.5 (p=0.021). CONCLUSION: WHtR is a simple and valid index for identifying adolescents with increased cardiometabolic risk and is related to CMRFs even in non-overweight adolescents. In adolescents already screened via BMI and waist circumference (WC), WHtR seems to be of additional help in discriminating those at higher cardiometabolic risk.
Adolescent ; Blood Pressure/physiology ; *Body Height ; Body Mass Index ; Cardiovascular Diseases/*epidemiology ; Child ; Cholesterol, HDL/blood ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension/complications/epidemiology ; Male ; Metabolic Syndrome X/*epidemiology ; Nutrition Surveys ; Obesity, Abdominal/complications/*epidemiology ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology ; Risk Factors ; Triglycerides/blood ; *Waist Circumference/physiology ; *Waist-Height Ratio ; Young Adult

BACKGROUNDObstructive sleep apnea (OSA) syndrome has a negative impact on the health of millions of adolescents and youth. The aim of this study was to evaluate the associations of OSA syndrome with obesity and cardiometabolic risk factors among adolescents and youth at risk for metabolic syndrome (MS).

METHODSA total of 558 subjects aged 14-28 years were recruited from the Beijing Child and Adolescent Metabolic Syndrome Study. Each underwent a 2-h oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), echocardiography, and liver ultrasonography. Anthropometric measures, blood levels of glucose, lipids, and liver enzymes were assessed. Subjects with high or low risk for OSA were identified by Berlin Questionnaire (BQ).

RESULTSAmong the subjects in obesity, 33.7% of whom were likely to have OSA by BQ. Subjects with high risk for OSA had higher neck and waist circumference and fat mass percentage compared to those with low risk for OSA (P < 0.001). Moreover, significant differences in levels of lipids, glucose after OGTT, and liver enzymes, as well as echocardiographic parameters were found between the two groups with high or low risk for OSA (P < 0.05). The rates of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (71.0% vs. 24.2%), MS (38.9% vs. 7.0%), and its components in high-risk group were significantly higher than in low-risk group.

CONCLUSIONSThe prevalence of OSA by BQ was high in obese adolescents and youth. A high risk for OSA indicates a high cardiometabolic risk. Mechanisms mediating the observed associations require further investigation.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Beijing ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Metabolic Syndrome ; complications ; epidemiology ; Obesity ; complications ; epidemiology ; Risk Factors ; Sleep Apnea, Obstructive ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Waist Circumference ; physiology ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo investigate the association of erectile dysfunction (ED) with metabolic syndrome ( MS) and the total testosterone ( tT) level in young and middle-aged men.

METHODSThis study included 154 organic ED outpatients aged 20 -59 years and 103 age-matched men with normal sexual life. We obtained their waist circumference ( WC) , blood pressure ( BP) , fasting blood glucose ( FBG) , triglyceride ( TG) , high density lipoprotein ( HDL) , tT, IIEF -5 score, erectile function indexes and other relevant variables, and compared them between the ED and non-ED groups as well as between the ED patients with MS and those without MS.

RESULTSThe prevalence of MS was significantly higher in the ED patients than in the non-ED males ( 40. 9 vs 17.4%, P < 0. 01). Statistically significant differences were found between the ED and non-ED groups in WC ( [90. 80 ±4. 90] vs [87. 70 ±4. 60] em, P <0.01), SBP ([134.40±14.40] vs [129.90±12.40] mmHg, Pcircumference ( [9. 67 ± 1.09] vs [10.16 ± 1.01] cm, P <0. 01), erectile penile length ( [ 10.40 ± 1. 20] vs [ 10.79 ± 1. 07] cm, P <0. 05), glans temperature ( [ 31. 33 ± 0. 65] vs [ 31. 80 ± 0. 82] °C , P < 0. 01) , and mean axial hardness of the penis ( [ 332. 60 ± 137. 90] vs [ 419. 20 ± 145. 80] g, P < 0. 01 ) . WC was significantly correlated with the incidence of ED ( P < 0. 01 ) .

CONCLUSIONThe prevalence of MS is significantly higher in young and middle-aged ED patients than in normal males, and MS is associated with a lower testosterone level and poorer erectile performance. Central obesity is closely correlated with ED in young and middle-aged men.

Adult ; Case-Control Studies ; Cholesterol ; blood ; Erectile Dysfunction ; blood ; etiology ; Humans ; Male ; Metabolic Syndrome ; blood ; complications ; epidemiology ; Middle Aged ; Penile Erection ; physiology ; Prevalence ; Testosterone ; blood ; Triglycerides ; blood ; Waist Circumference ; Young Adult

BACKGROUNDMany studies have suggested that C-reactive protein (CRP) and blood lipids are associated with hypertension and cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, few studies discussed the combined action of CRP and blood lipids on the risk of hypertension and prehypertension. This study aimed to investigate the combined action of CRP and lipid profiles on the risk of hypertension and prehypertension in Mongolian adults from Inner Mongolia, China.

METHODSThe systolic and diastolic blood pressure, height, weight and waist circumference were measured and factors such as smoking, alcohol intake, family history of hypertension, etc., were investigated and CRP, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), triglycerides (TG) were tested for 2 534 Mongolian adults aged ≥ 20 years. The subjects were divided into four subgroups, namely CRP median subgroup, CRP >median and LDL-C (TG) median and LDL-C (TG) >median subgroup. The ORs (95% CIs) of hypertension and prehypertension for the subgroups were calculated by univariate and multivariate analysis.

RESULTSThe multivariate adjusted ORs (95%CIs) of hypertension/prehypertension were 1.389 (0.979-1.970)/1.151(0.865-1.531), 1.666 (1.159-2.394)/1.431 (1.060-1.930), 1.756 (1.242-2.484)/ 1.770 (1.321-2.372), for CRP median subgroup, CRP >median and LDL-C median and LDL-C >median subgroup, respectively, compared with CRP median subgroup, CRP >median and TG median and TG >median subgroup, respectively, compared with CRP median and LDL-C (TG) >median subgroup among the four subgroups.

CONCLUSIONSSubjects with both CRP >median and LDL-C (TG) >median had highest risks of hypertension and prehypertension among all subjects. This study appeared to indicate that the combined action of elevated CRP and elevated LDL-C (TG) further increase the risks of hypertension and prehypertension among Mongolian population.

Adult ; Body Height ; physiology ; Body Weight ; physiology ; C-Reactive Protein ; metabolism ; China ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension ; blood ; epidemiology ; metabolism ; Lipids ; blood ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Waist Circumference ; physiology

OBJECTIVETo analyze the relationship between birth weight and elevated blood pressure among schoolchildren aged 6-11 years in 8 provinces of China.

METHODA stratified random cluster sampling was used from sampling frame of eight provinces in the mainland of China. A total of 18 920 students aged 6-11 years eventually participated in this study. Height, weight, waist circumference (WC) and blood pressure of all the subjects were measured. Korotkoff I and V were recorded as systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP). Elevated blood pressure was considered for SBP and/or DBP equal to or above the reference sex-, age- and height-specific 95th percentile. Birth weight and family history of hypertension were collected by self-administered questionnaire. Analysis of variance was used to compare body measure indicators among 3 birth weight groups. Multivariate Logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the relationship between birth weight, current BMI and elevated blood pressure among children.

RESULTThe level of height, weight, WC, BMI, SBP and DBP were on the rise with the increase of the birth weight groups among boys (P < 0.05), except for WC among boys aged 6-8 years. The level of height, weight, WC, BMI and DBP showed a trend of escalation among girls (P < 0.05). But, SBP among 3 birth weight groups in girls was not significantly different (P = 0.099). After adjusting for age and family history of hypertension, compared with the normal birth weight group, the odds ratio and 95%CI of having elevated blood pressure among boys and girls in high birth weight group were 1.23 (1.06-1.43) and 0.89 (0.71-1.10), respectively; and the ORs(95%CI) were 1.06 (0.90-1.24) for boys and 0.73 (0.58-0.91) for girls after adjusting for age, family history of hypertension and current BMI of students. The relative risk of elevated blood pressure for boys and girls in low birth weight group were not significantly different as compared with normal birth weight group.

CONCLUSIONCurrent BMI but not birth weight was found to be a strong determinant of elevated blood pressure among children aged 6-11 years in China.

Birth Weight ; Blood Pressure ; physiology ; Blood Pressure Determination ; Body Mass Index ; Body Weight ; Child ; China ; epidemiology ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension ; epidemiology ; physiopathology ; prevention & control ; Male ; Overweight ; epidemiology ; physiopathology ; Risk Factors ; Sampling Studies ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Waist Circumference

PURPOSE: Obesity is a major public health issue and is associated with many metabolic abnormalities. Consequently, the assessment of obesity is very important. A new measurement, the body adiposity index (BAI), has recently been proposed to provide valid estimates of body fat percentages. The objective of this study was to compare the BAI and body mass index (BMI) as measurements of body adiposity and metabolic risk. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional analysis performed on Korean women. The weight, height, and hip circumferences of 2950 women (mean age 25+/-5 years old, 18-39 years) were measured, and their BMI and BAI [hip circumference (cm)/height (m)(1.5)-18] values were calculated. Bioelectric impedance analysis was used to evaluate body fat content. Glucose tolerance status was assessed with a 75-g oral glucose tolerance test, and insulin sensitivity was estimated with the insulin sensitivity index. RESULTS: BMI was more significantly correlated with fat mass and fat percentage. Additionally, BMI was also more significantly associated with metabolic parameters, including fasting glucose, post-load 2-h glucose, fasting insulin, post-load 2-h insulin, triglycerides, and high density lipoprotein cholesterol than BAI. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis revealed that BMI was a better tool for predicting body fat percentage than BAI. Insulin sensitivity and metabolic syndrome were more significantly associated with BMI than with BAI. CONCLUSION: In Korean women, the current BMI-based classifications for obesity might be superior to BAI-based measurements for determining obesity and predicting metabolic risk.
Adiposity/*physiology ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Body Composition/physiology ; Body Mass Index ; Body Weight/physiology ; Cholesterol, HDL/blood ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Female ; Humans ; Obesity/blood/*physiopathology ; Triglycerides/blood ; Waist Circumference/physiology ; Young Adult

BACKGROUNDBlood pressure variability (BPV) is a reliable prognostic factor for cardiovascular events. Currently there is a worldwide lack of large sample size studies in visit-to-visit BPV. Based on the Kailuan Study, we analyzed the visit-to-visit BPV of patients to investigate the range and influencing factors of BPV.

METHODSIn 11 hospitals in the Kailuan Company, 4 441 patients received routine health checkups. Physical examination measured blood pressure (BP), body height, body weight, and waist circumference, and body mass index was calculated. Blood samples were analyzed for plasma total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), fasting blood glucose (FBG), and high-sensitivity c-reactive protein (hs-CRP).

RESULTSThe effect of gender on systolic BPV was investigated. The average systolic BPV was 10.35 mmHg (1 mmHg = 0.133 kPa) overall, 10.54 mmHg in males and 10.06 mmHg in females. Multivariate Logistic regression analysis revealed that the age (RR = 1.022), systolic BP (SBP, RR = 1.007), LDL-C (RR = 1.098), and history of hypertension (RR = 1.273) were significant risk factors for higher systolic BPV. We found that aging (RR = 1.022), increased SBP (RR = 1.007), and a history of hypertension (RR = 1.394) were determinants of systolic BPV in males. The risk factors for systolic BPV of females were aging (RR = 1.017), increased SBP (RR = 1.009), increased LDL (RR = 1.136), and increased TG (RR = 1.157).

CONCLUSIONOur findings indicated that the systolic BPV is closely associated with age, SBP and history of hypertension.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Blood Pressure ; physiology ; C-Reactive Protein ; metabolism ; China ; Cities ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension ; physiopathology ; Lipoproteins, HDL ; blood ; Lipoproteins, LDL ; blood ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Triglycerides ; blood ; Waist Circumference ; physiology