Cardiovascular disease (CVD) accounts for 37.1 percent of all deaths in the United States. Physical activity is inversely related to both CV event risk and to many of the individual CVD risk factors. The inverse relationship between physical activity and CVD risk is well established. However, much dispute remains about the optimal physical activity intensity and duration related to health benefits and to lower CVD risk. The ability to objectively measure intensity and duration may clarify the inverse relationship between physical activity and CVD. The purpose of this collection of studies was to explore the association of physical activity with CVD and attempt to identify some specifics of this complex relationship. Results: In healthy sedentary individuals aged 31 to 66, 2 different activity accumulation programs were effective in increasing physical activity and resulted in improved fitness and blood glucose. However, the improvement in activity was not of sufficient intensity to provide changes in multiple heart disease risk factors or inflammation. In a cross-section sample of males and females aged 18 to 65, both active and sedentary, the relationship between physical activity and CVD risk varied by age group. The inverse relationship between physical activity and CVD risk was confirmed. However, reaching higher intensity levels for 1 minute periods at least 5 minutes a day appears to be better related to lower risk of CVD than longer durations of moderate or vigorous activity per day, particularly in younger individuals. In a sample of stroke survivors aged 50 to 72, 3 out of 6 of the modifiable risk factors for CVD were present. In these stroke survivors, physical activity intensity and duration were well below current recommendations and insufficient for CVD risk reduction. Conclusions: Accumulating activity can be effective in meeting physical activity recommendations however both duration and intensity requirements must be achieved. Combinations of higher intensities for shorter durations may also be effective in CVD risk reduction.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:MONTANA/oai:etd.lib.umt.edu:etd-05222008-100646 |
| Date | 07 August 2008 |
| Creators | Gubler, Coral Michelle |
| Contributors | Steven Fehrer, Steven Gaskill, James Laskin, Lawrence Dent, Daniel Dennis, John Lundt |
| Publisher | The University of Montana |
| Source Sets | University of Montana Missoula |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://etd.lib.umt.edu/theses/available/etd-05222008-100646/ |
| Rights | unrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached hereto a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to University of Montana or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
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