Distinct trajectories of physical activity and related factors during the life course in the general population: a systematic review

Abstract

Background In recent years, researchers have begun applying a trajectory approach to identify homogeneous subgroups of physical activity (PA) in heterogeneous populations. This study systematically reviewed the articles identifying longitudinal PA trajectory classes and the related factors (e.g., determinants, predictors, and outcomes) in the general population during different life phases. Methods The included studies used finite mixture models for identifying trajectories of PA, exercise, or sport participation. Three electronic databases, PubMed (Medline), Web of Science, and CINAHL, were searched from the year 2000 to 13 February 2018. The study was conducted according to the PRISMA recommendations. Results Twenty-seven articles were included and organized into three age group: youngest (eleven articles), middle (eight articles), and oldest (eight articles). The youngest group consisted mainly of youth, the middle group of adults and the oldest group of late middle-aged and older adults. Most commonly, three or four trajectory classes were reported. Several trajectories describing a decline in PA were reported, especially in the youngest group, whereas trajectories of consistently increasing PA were observed in the middle and oldest group. While the proportion of persistently physically inactive individuals increased with age, the proportion was relatively high at all ages. Generally, male gender, being Caucasian, non-smoking, having low television viewing time, higher socioeconomic status, no chronic illnesses, and family support for PA were associated either with persistent or increasing PA. Conclusions The reviewed articles identified various PA subgroups, indicating that finite mixture modeling can yield new information on the complexity of PA behavior compared to studying population mean PA level only. The studies also provided novel information how different factors relate to changes in PA during life course. The recognition of the PA subgroups and their determinants is important for the more precise targeting of PA promotion and PA interventions. Trial registration PROSPERO registration number: CRD42018088120 . Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12889-019-6513-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Trajectories of physical activity, from young adulthood to older adulthood, and pancreatic cancer risk; a population-based case-control study in Ontario, Canada

“…A recent systematic review [12] found most studies identified three to five physical activity trajectories, which differs from the 6 distinct life-course trajectories identified in the current study. The six identified trajectories reflect plausible experiences of physical activity level throughout the life-course.…”

“…We first identified the potential number of trajectories that may fit the model based on previous literature. A recent systematic review noted the most common number of trajectories of physical activity across the life-course were 3-5 [12]. We tested models with up to 7 trajectories.…”

“…Another study provides some limited support for an accumulation of risk model showing weak evidence for reduced pancreatic cancer risk with consistent physical activity over time [7]. A recent systematic review identified unique trajectories of physical activity over the life-course [12]. To the best of our knowledge, no study has explicitly examined whether the duration, timing and trajectories of physical activity across a person's life course are associated with incidence of pancreatic cancer, or explicitly evaluated the impacts of earlier life physical activity on the risk of development of pancreatic cancer.…”

Associations Between Trajectories of Leisure-Time Physical Activity and Television Viewing Time Across Adulthood: The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study

“…25 The inconsistent findings may be due to a wide range of ages or differences in methodology or measurements. 26 The consistently moderate TV-time (2 h/d) class was found to be the most prevalent (48.3%), which slightly differs with the previous result showing that the mean daily TV time in 2015 was 2 hours and 54 minutes per day for Finnish adults aged 25-44 years. 27 Our study found a smaller proportion of adults in the consistently high TV-time class and a larger proportion of adults in the consistently low TVtime class compared with the previous trajectory studies examining youth only.…”

Using Physical Education to Promote Leisure-Time Physical Activity in Lower Secondary School Students: The PETALS Trial

“…However, international [7] and national [8] studies have shown that the majority of young people do not achieve the recommended physical activity levels to confer health bene ts [9]. Furthermore, participation rates in physical activity tend to decrease throughout childhood, with particularly steep declines observed during adolescence [10,11]. For example, national trends in Finland suggest that 45% of 11-year old students meet guideline levels for physical activity, while only 19% of 15-year olds achieved these levels [8].…”