Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
Woodhouse Lane,
LS1 3HE
New study makes recommendations for UK physical activity policy
The study, led by Stephen Zwolinsky, a researcher within the School of Sport at Leeds Beckett University, and published in the latest edition of the Journal of Physical Activity and Health, suggests reducing sedentary time and increasing light intensity activity as a more realistic and achievable goal for the long-term inactive as they are likely to respond more favourably to these messages and still generate substantial health benefit.
The research also found that women and people from the most deprived areas are likely to spend the most time sitting and being inactive.
The researchers analysed data from 22,836 participants of the Leeds Let’s Get Active programme, developed by Leeds City Council as part of Sport England’s ‘Get Healthy, Get into Sport’ initiative. The programme aims to get inactive Leeds residents to do more activity, giving them free access to 17 swimming pools and gyms on specified days and times. Information was gathered using online and paper-based questionnaires between September 2013 and December 2014.
Stephen explained: “The aim of our research was to strengthen the evidence base on the relationship between sedentary behaviour and physical activity. At present, over half of the UK adult population fail to meet the current physical activity guidelines and modern lifestyles dictate that individuals are likely to spend a considerable portion of the day being sedentary.
“Higher levels of sedentary behavior can increase the odds of premature cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality. It can also lower bone mineral density, which increases the risk of osteoporosis in older age.”
The study develops our understanding about how people can be classified according to similarities in MVPA and sedentary behavior. A key finding was that high levels of self-reported sedentary behavior, determined by sitting time, appeared to cluster with low levels of MVPA. The finding that women spent more time per day sitting than men is a gendered effect not noted in previous research.
Stephen explained: “It has been documented that higher levels of sitting time appear to have a damaging influence on insulin resistance and chronic low grade inflammation in women, but not men. Therefore, reducing sedentary time in these women should be a priority.
“Given the associated health implications, reducing sedentary behaviour across the board, but especially for inactive individuals, is not only a major Public Health challenge, but a best buy for scarce Public Health resources.”