Long-term ambient air pollution exposure and prospective change in sedentary behaviour and physical activity in individuals at risk of type 2 diabetes in the UK
Abstract
Background: Air pollution may be a risk factor for physical inactivity and sedentary behaviour (SED) through discouraging active lifestyles, impairing fitness and contributing to chronic diseases with potentially important consequences for population health.
Methods: Using generalized estimating equations, we examined the associations between long-term particulate matter with diameter ≤2.5 μm (PM2.5), ≤10 μm (PM10) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and annual change in accelerometer-measured SED, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and steps in adults at risk of type 2 diabetes within the Walking Away from Type 2 Diabetes trial. We adjusted for important confounders including social deprivation and measures of the built environment.
Results: From 808 participants, 644 had complete data (1605 observations; 64.7% men; mean age 63.86 years). PM2.5, NO2 and PM10 were not associated with change in MVPA/steps but were associated with change in SED, with a 1 ugm-3 increase associated with 6.38 (95% confidence interval: 0.77, 12.00), 1.52 (0.49, 2.54) and 4.48 (0.63, 8.34) adjusted annual change in daily minutes, respectively.
Conclusions: Long-term PM2.5, NO2 and PM10 exposures were associated with an annual increase in SED: ~11-22 min/day per year across the sample range of exposure (three standard deviations). Future research should investigate whether interventions to reduce pollution may influence SED.
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Date
2023-12-16
Type
Article
Subject
air pollution, chronic disease, physical activity
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Citation
Goldney, J., Henson, J., Edwardson, C. L., Khunti, K., Davies, M. J., & Yates, T. (2023). Long-term ambient air pollution exposure and prospective change in sedentary behaviour and physical activity in individuals at risk of type 2 diabetes in the UK. Journal of public health (Oxford, England), fdad263. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1093/pubmed/fdad263