Systematic Review and Comparison of Physical Activity Variations Among Global Worker Populations

Abstract

There are varying levels of physical activity between different occupations, and these levels for the same job can differ among global populations. The purpose of this review was to identify and compare physical activity among occupations and across countries, grouped as continents. A systematic review was conducted adhering to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Five databases were searched, and 10,923 articles were systematically reviewed. Twelve studies were included based on reported measurements of physical activity in metabolic equivalents (METs) using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ). Preliminary results show that healthcare practitioners report the highest levels of physical activity. It was found that occupations in Europe reported the greatest mean MET of all continents included in this study. These results can be used to build a database of physical activity levels of different work populations and regions for researchers and practitioners to use for benchmarking.