Physical Activity Initiated by Employer and its health effects: an eight-week follow-up study

Abstract

Background: While the health benefits of physical activity are well established, little is known about health effects of physical activity programs initiated by employer. Methods: Background data and level of physical activity were collected by questionnaire among 78 men and 43 women working in road maintenance pre and post an 8-week physical activity motivational program. As a part of the program steps measured by accelerometer were registered online where team and individual performances could be continuously monitored. The physical activity levels were registered as 1) those physical active ≤1 time per week, 2) 2-3 times per week and 3) ≥4 times a week. Maximal oxygen uptake (VO 2max ), blood pressure, resting heart rate (RHR) and blood samples (glycosylated hemoglobin, lipids and C-reactive protein) were obtained at baseline and after eight weeks. Mixed models were applied to evaluate associations between physical activity and health parameters.

Higher-protein intake and physical activity are associated with healthier body composition and cardiometabolic health in Hispanic adults

“…Fasting insulin concentration was significantly lower in men and women that fit both the HP and PA3 (HP+PA3) categories (> 1.11 g/kg/d and >3.2 km/d) compared to LP+PA1 (≤ 0.91 g/kg/d and ≤ 0.8 km/d), which supports previous research suggesting the importance of increased PA for improving insulin regulation [43]. However, in the present study, higher PA was also associated with significantly higher LDL-cholesterol, which contradicts previous findings [44]. The associations between protein intake and PA level with cardiometabolic health observed in this study raise interesting questions in regard to whether diet or PA is the primary regulator cardiometabolic health.…”

Mobile health interventions to promote physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviour in the workplace: A systematic review

“…The full text was obtained for 71 publications; of these, 18 publications describing 15 studies met the criteria for inclusion. 37–54 An updated search to February 2018 found an additional five publications describing four studies, 55–59 and a second updated search to December 2018 found an additional seven publications for six studies, 60–66 resulting in a total of 30 publications (25 studies) for inclusion in the review.…”

“…Eleven studies were conducted in the USA, 42–46,50,53,57,59,60,62 five in Australia, 37,38,49,55,56,61,66 two in Canada, 58,63 two in the Netherlands, 52,54 one in Belgium, 64,65 Singapore, 39,40 Finland, 47,48 Norway, 51 and one in multiple countries. 41 Workplace settings included academic and academic medical institutions, 42–44,50,53,57,59,60,62 healthcare, 63,66 health insurance, 45,49 wellbeing improvement, 46 property and infrastructure, 37,38 pension insurance, 47,48 financial services, 61 road maintenance, 51 and haulage. 55,56 Six studies targeted multiple organisations.…”

The Physical Activity Wearables in the Police Force (PAW-Force) study: Acceptability and impact 

“…Additional strengths were the inclusion of multiple outcomes (including both objective and self-reported measures of PA) and the capture of data at multiple time points, which enabled a more detailed exploration of impact and acceptability of the intervention. Furthermore, the study was of relatively long duration with follow-up at eight months; previous studies of mHealth interventions for PA in other workplace settings have been characterised by short-term interventions and follow-up, generally less than six months (22)(23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30). The high ecological validity of this study, conducted in a real-world setting, and the relatively large, diverse and representative sample of o cers and staff (including both urban and rural sites) should also be recognised.…”

“…Despite its considerable potential, there are many gaps in our understanding of how mHealth technology may be utilised to change behaviour and its potential impact on health outcomes. Systematic reviews have found mHealth studies to be characterised by short-term interventions and follow-up (18)(19)(20)(21), with follow-up typically six months or less (22)(23)(24)(25) and often only a few weeks (26)(27)(28)(29)(30) in duration. Aspects such as feasibility, acceptability and engagement are of vital importance, but remain understudied in mHealth research (31).…”