Actividad física en población adulta trabajadora española: resultados de la Encuesta Europea de Salud en España (2009)

OBJECTIVES: 1) To describe physical activity in the Spanish adult working population aged 16-70 years in 2009, and 2) to describe the prevalence of physical activity according to socio-demographic features, self-perceived health status, co-morbidity, and lifestyle habits. DESIGN: An epidemiological population based descriptive study was conducted using individual data taken from the European Health Survey for Spain. SETTING: Community. PARTICIPANTS: The number of subjects aged 16-70 years included in the study was 10,928 (5,628 women and 5,300 men). INTERVENTIONS: None. MAIN VARIABLES: Physical activity and intensity were assessed from questions included in the interview-survey. An analysis was performed on the socio-demographic characteristics and self-rated physical and mental health, using multivariate logistic regression models. RESULTS: Not having a partner (OR 1.44; P < .001), have university studies (OR 1.62; P < .001), non-smoker (OR 1.50; P < .001), and taking medications (OR 1.22; P < .5) were a predictor of intense physical activity in men. The first 3 factors are equal for intense activity in women. In contrast, obesity (OR 0.58; P < .001), and 36-50 years (OR 0.68; P < .001) were factors related to low activity in men. Aged between 36-50 years (OR 1.26; P < .01), suffering ≥ 2 co-morbid conditions (OR 1.30; P < .001), and non-smoker (OR 1.17; P < .5) were also associated with higher probability of reporting moderate physical activity in women. The positive mental health was significant for physical activity in both sexes (OR 1.01; P < .5). CONCLUSIONS: This study identified several factors that appear to influence physical activity in the Spanish adult working population, with potential implications for healthcare providers.