Associations Between Physical Activity and Cardiometabolic Risk Factors Assessed in a Southern California Health Care System, 2010–2012

INTRODUCTION: Risk factors associated with many chronic diseases can be improved through regular physical activity. This study investigated whether cross-sectional associations between physical activity, assessed by the Exercise Vital Sign (EVS), and cardiometabolic risk factors can be detected in clinical settings. METHODS: We used electronic records from Kaiser Permanente Southern California members (N = 622,897) to examine the association of EVS category with blood pressure, fasting glucose, random glucose, and glycosylated hemoglobin. Adults aged 18 years or older with at least 3 EVS measures between April 2010 and December 2012, without comorbid conditions, and not taking antihypertension or glucose-lowering medications were included. We compared consistently inactive (EVS = 0 min/wk for every measure) with consistently active (EVS ≥150 min/wk) and irregularly active (EVS 1–149 min/wk or not meeting the consistently active or inactive criteria) patients. Separate linear regression analyses were conducted controlling for age, sex, race/ethnicity, body mass index, and smoking status. RESULTS: Consistently active women had lower systolic (−4.60 mm Hg; 95% confidence interval [CI], −4.70 to −4.44) and diastolic (−3.28 mm Hg; 95% CI, −3.40 to −3.17) blood pressure than inactive women. Active men had lower diastolic blood pressure than inactive men. Consistently active patients (women, −5.27 mg/dL [95% CI, −5.56 to −4.97]; men, −1.45 mg/dL [95% CI, −1.75 to −1.16] and irregularly active patients (women, −4.57 mg/dL [95% CI, −4.80 to −4.34]; men, −0.42 mg/dL [95% CI, −0.66 to −0.19]) had lower fasting glucose than consistently inactive patients. Consistently active and irregularly active men and women also had favorable random glucose and HbA1c compared with consistently inactive patients. CONCLUSION: Routine clinical physical activity assessment may give health care providers additional information about their patients’ cardiometabolic risk factors.