Guthold R, et al. – Given that inadequate physical activity is a leading risk factor for non-communicable diseases and has an adverse effect on mental health and quality of life, researchers delineated levels of insufficient activity across countries and estimated global and regional trends. Findings from this pooled analysis of 358 population-based surveys involving ~2 million participants (representing 96% of the global population) demonstrated that, globally, in 2016, physical activity was insufficient among more than a quarter of all adults. The investigators also found that there was great variation in the prevalence of insufficient physical activity across regions and income groups. Latin America, the Caribbean, high-income Western countries, and high-income Asia Pacific showed the highest levels of insufficient physical activity, and prevalence was more than double in high- vs low-income countries in 2016.

Methods

• Pooled data from 358 population-based surveys involving 1.9 million participants (across 168 countries) that reported the prevalence of insufficient physical activity, including physical activity at work, at home, for transport, and during leisure time (ie, not doing at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity physical activity per week, or any equivalent combination of the two) were included in this analysis.
• Researchers used regression models to adjust the survey data to a standard definition and age groups.
• Multilevel mixed-effects modelling was used to estimate time trends.

Results

• In 2016, researchers found the global age-standardized prevalence of insufficient physical activity to be 27.5% (95% uncertainty interval: 25.0–32.2); the difference between sexes was more than 8 percentage points (23.4%, 21.1–30.7 for men vs 31.7%, 28.6–39.0 for women).
• Levels of insufficient activity were stable between 2001 and 2016 (28.5%, 23.9–33.9 in 2001; change not significant).
• In 2016, the highest levels of insufficient physical activity were observed among women in Latin America and the Caribbean (43.7%, 42.9–46.5), south Asia (43.0%, 29.6–74.9), and high-income Western countries (42.3%, 39.1–45.4), whereas the lowest levels were noted among men from Oceania (12.3%, 11.2–17.7), east and southeast Asia (17.6%, 15.7–23.9), and sub-Saharan Africa (17.9%, 15.1–20.5).
• In high-income countries, prevalence was more than twice as high (36.8%, 35.0–38.0) vs low-income countries (16.2%, 14.2–17.9) in 2016; over time, insufficient activity has increased in these countries (31.6%, 27.1–37.2 in 2001).