Physical activity and stress in adult Hispanics

Support Provided by Caregivers for Community-Dwelling Obesity Individuals: Focus on Elderly and Hispanics

Obesity is a chronic disease marked by the buildup of extra adipose tissue and a higher chance of developing concomitant illnesses such as heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and some malignancies. Over the past few decades, there has been a global increase in the prevalence of obesity, which now affects around one-third of the world's population. According to recent studies, a variety of factors, including genetics and biology as well as environmental, physiological, and psychosocial factors, may have a role in the development of obesity. The prevalence of obesity is often higher among Hispanic American groups than among White people in the U.S. Obesity is a widespread condition with a high risk of morbidity and death, and it is well-recognized that the prevalence of comorbidities rises with rising levels of obesity or body mass index. To combat the rising prevalence of obesity in the USA, especially among Hispanics, one of the fastest-growing racial/ethnic groups in the country, there is an urgent need for obesity therapies. The exact cause of this disparity is unclear, but some responsible factors are a lack of education, high unemployment rates, high levels of food insecurity, an unhealthy diet, inadequate access to physical activity resources, a lack of health insurance, and constricted access to culturally adequate healthcare. Additionally, managing obesity and giving needed/timely support to obese people is a difficult responsibility for medical professionals and their loved ones. The need for caregivers is increasing with the increased number of individuals with obesity, particularly Hispanics. Our article summarizes the status of obesity, focusing on Hispanic populations, and we also highlight specific factors that contribute to obesity, including genetics, epigenetics, biological, physiological, and psychosocial factors, medication and disease, environment, and socio-demographics. This article also reviews caregiver duties and challenges associated with caring for people with obesity.

The role of combined modifiable lifestyle behaviors in the longitudinal association between stressful life events and allostatic load in Australian adults

Allostatic load is a model that is used to quantify the physiological damage from exposure to stressors. Stressful life events are chronic stressors that can lead to an elevated allostatic load through the physiological and behavioral stress responses. However, there is limited empirical studies that has tested the proposed behavioural pathway. Our study addresses this gap by examining the mediating role of combined modifiable lifestyle behaviors in the 12-years longitudinal association between stressful life events and allostatic load among participants from the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle (AusDiab) Study cohort. A latent profile analysis was performed to identify latent subgroups with distinct behavioral clusters based on five modifiable lifestyle behaviors (smoking, sedentary behavior, physical activity, alcohol consumption, and diet quality). We then used a sequential mediation model design with path analysis to test the mediating effect of these latent subgroups in the associations between stressful life events and three measures of allostatic load. Indirect effects were estimated using the product of coefficient approach and the statistical significance was determined by the 95% bias-corrected bootstrap confidence intervals with 1000 replications. We identified three latent subgroups: "least healthy lifestyle" (12%; n = 396), "moderately healthy lifestyle" (78.7%; n = 2599), and "most healthy lifestyle" (9.2%; n = 306). Exposure to stressful life events was not associated with the allocation of participants in latent subgroups. Compared to the "moderately healthy lifestyle" subgroups, we found that the "least healthy lifestyle" behavioral cluster was not associated with allostatic load. However, there was a significant inverse association between the "most healthy lifestyle" behavioral cluster and allostatic load. Overall, we did not find significant indirect effects between stressful life events and three measures of allostatic load via the "least healthy lifestyle" and the "most healthy lifestyle" groups. In summary, the combinations of modifiable lifestyle behaviors did not explain the association between stressful life events and allostatic load. More longitudinal studies are needed to replicate our study to confirm this finding.

How Do We Measure Stress in Latinos in the United States? A Systematic Review

Background: Previous research has documented that Latinos report higher levels of stress than other ethnicities and are an increasing portion of the demographics of the United States. While there are many measures to assess stress and other stress-related conditions, there are no systematic reviews to date to assess whether the current measures of generalized stress are valid or reliable in Latinos in the United States. The purpose of this systematic review was to examine the current state of the literature assessing the psychometric properties in stress measures in this population.

Methods: We used Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines to review the literature from January 1990 to May 2020 for studies, which measured the psychometric properties of scales measuring generalized stress in Latinos in the United States.

Results: Twelve studies measured the psychometric properties of eight scales of generalized stress. The 10-item Perceived Stress Scale, the Hispanic Stress Inventory, the Hispanic Women's Social Stressor Scale, and the Family Obligation Stress Scale show the strongest reliability and validity for measuring stress in Latinos in the United States. Most studies were done in traditional immigration destinations in the United States.

Conclusion: While four scales which show acceptable reliability and validity for measuring stress in Latinos in the United States, continuing to develop and further validate these scales within Latino communities will be critical to understand and address Latino stress more comprehensively. Our findings can inform health research and clinical interventions for this at-risk community.

The association between fitness and obesity in diverse multi-ethnic college students

We examined differences and associations between physical fitness and behavioral factors with obesity in a multi-ethnic student population. Participants: Study population included non-Hispanic whites (NHW, n = 1,454); Hispanics (n = 1,436) and Asians (n = 1,016) at a metropolitan university from Fall 2006 to Fall 2013. Methods: Analyses of Variance and regression analyses, utilizing cross-sectional data, measured the association between fitness, and behavior with obesity. Results: BMI differences (p < .05) were observed between NHW (23.17 ± 3.67), Hispanics (24.32 ± 3.67), and Asians (22.92 ± 4.12). Fitness parameters, relative VO₂ max, % body fat, and total fitness score were significantly (p < .0001) associated with obesity. Stress was strongly significantly associated with obesity in Hispanics (p < .001) and somewhat in NHW. Conclusions: Obesity disparities persist in college. Physical fitness and stress management interventions should be targeted towards Hispanic and NHW college students, which may curb current and/or adult-onset obesity.

Quality of Life with Respect to Physical Activity Level in the Unemployed

Sustainable development is related to the quality of life of individuals and societies. The unemployed have limited opportunities for sustainable individual development. Their life quality conditions remain unclear. The study aim was to assess the relationship between life quality and physical activity level of the unemployed. The research was performed in 2014 and 2015 in Wrocław, Poland, among 403 unemployed persons. The participants’ quality of life was evaluated with the World Health Organization Quality of Life questionnaire. Physical activity was assessed with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Most respondents evaluated their general life quality as ≤3 points in the scale of 1–5. The assessments were highest in the social and psychological domains and lowest in the physical and environmental domains. Significant relationships were observed between general life quality and physical activity level. Subjects with the minimum physical activity level recommended by WHO presented higher life quality assessments in the psychological and social domains. Unemployed people with physical activity levels optimal for health benefit evaluated their life quality in the psychological domain worse than people with physical activity below WHO recommendations. Comprehensive health programs should be addressed to the unemployed, including systematic physical activities as health training, which would improve their life quality and promote sustainable individual development.

Relationship between subjective well-being and healthy lifestyle behaviours in older adults: a longitudinal study

Objectives: People who report better subjective well-being tend to be healthier in their daily behaviours. The objective of this study is to assess whether different components of subjective well-being are prospectively associated with different healthy lifestyle behaviours and to assess whether these associations differ by age.Method: A total of 1,892 participants aged 50+ living in Spain were interviewed in 2011-12 and 2014-15. Life satisfaction was measured with the Cantril Self-Anchoring Striving Scale. Positive and negative affect were assessed using the Day Reconstruction Method. Physical activity was assessed with the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire version 2. The remaining healthy lifestyle behaviours were self-reported. Generalised Estimating Equations (GEE) models were run.Results: Not having a heavy episodic alcohol drinking was the healthy lifestyle behaviour most fulfilled (97.97%), whereas the intake of five or more fruits and vegetables was the least followed (33.12%). GEE models conducted over the 50-64 and the 65+ age groups showed that a higher life satisfaction was significantly related to a higher physical activity in both groups. Relationships between a higher negative affect and presenting a lower level of physical activity, and a higher positive affect and following the right consumption of fruits and vegetables and being a non-daily smoker, were only found in the older group.Conclusion: The relationship between subjective well-being and healthy lifestyle behaviours was found fundamentally in those aged 65+ years. Interventions focused on incrementing subjective well-being would have an impact on keeping a healthy lifestyle and, therefore, on reducing morbidity and mortality.

Physical Activity in Older Mexican Americans Living in Two Cities on the U.S.-Mexico Border

BACKGROUND

There is limited information on physical activity in marginalized older populations like that on the U.S.-Mexico border. This study aims to understand physical activity engagement among older Hispanics residing in two U.S.-Mexico Border counties.

METHODS

The International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) was used to measure physical activity in El Paso and Cameron County, Texas. Physical activity levels were reported for vigorous, moderate, and walking met/mins. Adjusted and unadjusted modeling was conducted to determine county differences and sociodemographic covariates.

RESULTS

There were 784 participants and 92.9% were less than 65 years of age. El Paso participants reported a significantly greater natural log met/mins of vigorous (β = 1.34, p = 0.000) and walking (β = 0.331, p = 0.006). Significant sociodemographic covariates in El Paso for vigorous met/mins were gender (females β = -1.20, p = 0.003), having a regular doctor (β = -0.779, p = 0.029), and acculturation (β = 0.513, p = 0.019). Significant associations in Cameron County were having a regular doctor (β = -1.03, p = 0.000) and fair/poor health status (β = -0.475, p = 0.001).

CONCLUSION

Level of physical activity may differ in older Hispanics by urban context on the U.S.-Mexico border. Future physical activity programs to promote physical activity should take context into consideration.

Physical Activity as a Determinant of Quality of Life in Working-Age People in Wrocław, Poland

Regular physical activity can greatly contribute to the improvement of physical fitness and performance, reduction of the incidence risk of some occupational diseases, and as a consequence, to a general improvement of quality of life in terms of health status. The aim of the article was to assess relationships between the quality of life and physical activity of a working-age population. The study material comprised 4460 residents of the city of Wrocław, Poland (2129 men, 2331 women) aged 18-64 years. The study was a questionnaire survey using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form (IPAQ-SF) and The World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaires. The highest levels of overall quality of life and its four particular domains (physical, psychological, social, and environmental), as well as perceived health conditions were found among the most physically active respondents. Furthermore, the odds of high assessment of perceived overall quality of life were shown to increase with the increasing levels of physical activity. Activities aimed at the improvement of the quality of life of working-age people should involve programs enhancing the development of physical activity.

Factors increasing the risk for psychosocial stress among Korean adults living in rural areas: using generalized estimating equations and mixed models

Background

This study was conducted to analyze the distribution of the psychosocial well-being index among adults living in two rural communities in Korea and to examine its correlation with lifestyle variables such as sleep duration, regular exercise, and sedentary time.

Methods

Using the cohort data of the Atherosclerosis Risk of a Rural Area Korean General Population, this study examined 3631 participants living in Wonju and Pyeongchang in Gangwon Province; their preliminary data were established from 2005 to 2007 while their follow-up data were collected 3 years later. This study investigated demographic characteristics, lifestyle habits, disease history, Psychosocial Well-being Index-Short Form (PWI-SF) scores, sleep duration, regular exercise, and sedentary time during work. Using repeated measures ANOVA, this study examined how the variables and PWI-SF scores changed over the course of 3 years and identified the correlation between them based on mixed model analysis. Afterwards, using the generalized estimation equation, this study identified each variable's risk towards the PWI-SF high-risk group and performed a stratified analysis by occupation after dividing the participants into farmers and non-farmers.

Results

The PWI-SF high-risk group was found to be 18.9% of the participants from preliminary data and 15.5% from follow-up data. The odds ratio towards the PWI-SF high-risk group was 1.503 (95% CI 1.241-1.821) in the short sleep duration group and 1.327 (95% CI 1.136-1.550) in the non-regular exercise group. A stratified analysis by occupation showed that middle and long sedentary time in the white-collar group increased the risk toward the PWI-SF high-risk group.

Conclusions

Short sleep duration, no regular exercise, and long sedentary time in the white-collar group were identified as risk factors toward the PWI-SF high-risk group in the rural communities, and policy interventions are needed to address this issue.

Factors Associated With Physical Activity in Latina Women: A Systematic Review

The purpose of this systemic literature review is to unveil a greater understanding of Physical Activity in Latinas. We used PubMed and PsycInfo databases to search for articles published between 1991 and August 2016, examining physical activity and its correlates exclusively in adult Latinas. Only 21 primary studies met the inclusion criteria. Although physical activity derives from body movements in various domains, the leisure domain led the focus of research interest. The use of self-reports, cross-sectional design, and the ecological framework predominated. Only one study included examining the occupational domain, albeit as disaggregate in studies with a general physical activity approach. Occupational physical activity showed negative associations with education and acculturation. Positive associations were found between leisure-time physical activity, education, acculturation, and perceived health status. Despite the limited evidence to reach overall conclusions, this review uncovered methodological challenges and opportunities to advance knowledge about physical activity in Latinas.