Physical activity at work may not be health enhancing for cardiovascular health

Mini-Oral Presentation B2.13

Authors

  • Bart Cillekens Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute
  • Maiike A. Huysmans Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute
  • Andreas Holtermann National Research Centre for the Working Environment; University of Southern Denmark
  • Willem van Mechelen Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute
  • Leon Straker Curtin University
  • Niklas Krause University of California Los Angeles
  • Allard J. van der Beek Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute
  • Pieter Coenen Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14288/hfjc.v14i3.620

Keywords:

Occupational Physical Activity, Cardiovascular Mortality, CVD, Systematic Review

Abstract

Background: Emerging evidence suggests contrasting health effects for different physical activity domains, in particular when comparing leisure-time to occupational physical activity (OPA). Purpose: Our purpose was to systematically review the association between OPA and cardiovascular mortality disease (CVD) mortality. Methods: We searched the literature for prospective observation studies assessing the relationship between OPA and CVD mortality. Articles were included if they controlled for age and gender and at least one other relevant variable. We performed random-effects meta-analyses on the association between OPA and CVD mortality. Results: Twenty-three studies were included. In our meta-analyses, OPA showed no significant association with CVD mortality for both males (HR=1.00, 95% CI: 0.87-1.15) and females (HR=0.95, 95% CI: 0.82-1.09). Higher levels of OPA were non-significantly associated with a 15% increase in ischemic heart disease mortality. Subgroup analyses for gender, adjustment for different variables and study design features; such as country, historical time and duration of follow-up period, had no substantial effect on the effect estimate. Conclusions: While the beneficial association between leisure time physical activity and CVD mortality has been widely documented, OPA was not found to have a beneficial association with CVD mortality. This observation may have implications for our appreciation of the association between physical activity and health for workers in physically demanding jobs, as OPA may not be health enhancing. Funding: We did not receive any particular funding for this research

Published

2021-09-30

How to Cite

Cillekens, B., Huysmans, M., Holtermann, A., van Mechelen, W., Straker, L., Krause, N., van der Beek, A., & Coenen, P. (2021). Physical activity at work may not be health enhancing for cardiovascular health: Mini-Oral Presentation B2.13. The Health & Fitness Journal of Canada, 14(3). https://doi.org/10.14288/hfjc.v14i3.620