Can physical activity compensate for low socioeconomic status with regard to poor self-rated health and low quality-of-life?

BACKGROUND: Both high socioeconomic status (SES) and high physical activity (PA) are associated with better self-rated health (SRH) and higher quality-of-life (QoL). AIM: To investigate whether high levels of PA may compensate for the association between low SES and subjective health outcomes in terms of poorer SRH and lower QoL. METHOD: Data from a cross-sectional, population-based study (n = 5326) was utilized. Multiple logistic regression models were used to estimate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for the associations between indicators of SES (economic situation and educational level), SRH and QoL, as well as between the combination of SES and PA in relation to SRH and QoL. RESULT: Participants with high PA and economic problems had approximately the same OR for good SRH as those with low PA and without economic problems (OR 1.75 [95% CI 1.20–2.54] and 1.81 [1.25–2.63] respectively). Participants with high PA and low education had higher odds for good SRH (OR 3.34 [2.96–5.34] compared to those with low PA and high education (OR 1.46 [0.89–2.39]).Those with high PA and economic problems had an OR of 2.09 [1.42–3.08], for high QoL, while the corresponding OR for those with low PA and without economic problems was 4.38 [2.89–6.63]. CONCLUSION: Physically active people with low SES, had the same or even better odds to report good SRH compared to those with low PA and high SES. For QoL the result was not as consistent. The findings highlight the potential for promotion of PA to reduce SES-based inequalities in SRH. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s12955-019-1102-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.