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American Journal of Epidemiology Vol. 143, No. 6: 553-561
Copyright © 1996 by The Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health

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Physical Activity and Cardiovascular Risk Factors among Elderly Men in Finland, Italy, and The Netherlands

Fransje C. H. Bijnen1,2, Edith J. M. Feskens2, Carl J. Caspersen3, Simona Giampaoli4, Aulikki M. Nissinen5, Alessandro Menotti6, Willem L. Mosterd1 and Daan Kromhout2

1Department of Medical Physiology and Sports Medicine, School of Medicine, Utrecht University Utrecht, The Netherlands
2Department of Chronic Diseases and Environmental Epidemiology, National Institute of Public Health and the Environment Bilthoven, The Netherlands
3Cardiovascular Health Studies Branch, Division of Chronic Disease Control and Community Intervention, Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Atlanta, GA
4Laboratory of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, National Institute of Health Rome, Italy
5Department of Community Health and General Practice, School of Medicine, University of Kuopio Kuopio, Finland
6Division of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota Minneapolis, MN

Physical activity pattern and its relation with cardiovascular risk factors was investigated in 1,402 men aged 69–90 years who participated in the 30-year follow-up survey of the Finnish (Eastern and Western Finland), Italian (Montegiorgio and Crevalcore), and Dutch (Zutphen) cohorts of the Seven Countries Study. Physical activity was assessed with a validated self-administered questionnaire designed for retired men. Total physical activity varied largely within cohorts. Median total reported physical activity ranged from 50 minutes/day in Montegiorgio to 89 minutes/day in Crevalcore. Walking, gardening, and bicycling together contributed more than 70% of total physical activity in all cohorts. Depending on the definition of physical inactivity, the estimated prevalence of inactivity varied between 5% and 33% in Zutphen and between 18% and 68% in Montegiorgio. Total physical activity was inversely associated with resting heart rate (r = -0.11, p < 0.001) and was positively associated with high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (r = 0.08, p < 0.01) in pooled data. These associations remained statistically significant after adjustment for age, cohort, smoking, body mass index, and alcohol intake. Total activity was not associated with total cholesterol, non-HDL cholesterol, blood pressure, or body mass index. The authors conclude that physical activity may have a beneficial effect on HDL cholesterol levels in elderly men. Walking, gardening, and bicycling contribute substantially to their physical activity pattern.

aged; blood pressure; body mass index; cholesterol; coronary disease; exercise; physical fitness; risk factors


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