The association between daily steps and health, and the mediating role of body composition: a pedometer-based, cross-sectional study in an employed South African population

• Published in: BMC public health 2015-02, Vol.15 (1), p.174-174, Article 174
• Main Authors: Pillay, Julian D, van der Ploeg, Hidde P, Kolbe-Alexander, Tracy L, Proper, Karin I, van Stralen, Maartje, Tomaz, Simone A, van Mechelen, Willem, Lambert, Estelle V
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Actigraphy; Adult; Aged; Analysis; Blood Glucose; Blood pressure; Blood Pressure - physiology; Body Composition; Body fat; Body Mass Index; Body size; Cardiovascular disease; Cholesterol; Cholesterol - blood; Covariance; Cross-Sectional Studies; Electronics industry; Employees; Exercise; Exercise - physiology; Female; Guidelines; Health aspects; Health promotion; Health risks; Health sciences; Health Status; Humans; Male; Measuring instruments; Mediation; Medical screening; Middle Aged; Mortality; Physical activity; Physical fitness; Physiological aspects; Public health; South Africa - epidemiology; Studies; Systematic review; Waist Circumference; Walking; Walking - physiology; Well being; Workplace
• ISSN: 1471-2458; 1471-2458
• DOI: 10.1186/s12889-015-1381-6

Walking is recognized as an easily accessible mode of physical activity and is therefore supported as a strategy to promote health and well-being. To complement walking, pedometers have been identified as a useful tool for monitoring ambulatory physical activity, typically measuring total steps/day. There is, however, little information concerning dose-response for health outcomes in relation to intensity or duration of sustained steps. We aimed to examine this relationship, along with factors that mediate it, among employed adults. A convenience sample, recruited from work-site health risk screening (N = 312, 37 ± 9 yrs), wore a pedometer for at least three consecutive days. Steps were classified as "aerobic" (≥100 steps/minute and ≥10 consecutive minutes) or "non-aerobic" (