2nd International Conference on Pharma & Nutrition, Health and Aging
August 1-2, 2019 Valencia, Spain
Association of the Waist Circumference and BMI with Occupational Sedentary Behavior in a Higher Education Institution
1Dietectics and Nutrition Department, Coimbra Health School, Portugal
2Physiotherapy Department, Coimbra Health School, Portugal
3Environmental Health Department, Coimbra Health School, Portugal
In the last decades the prevalence of overweight and obesity has increased strongly. Because overweight and obesity increase the risk of various diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer, it is considered a major public health challenge around the world. A contributing factor for overweight/obesity could be the increase in sedentary labour lifestyle.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association of Body Mass Index (BMI), Waist Circumference (WC) with occupational sedentarism in workers of a higher education institution.
The WC measurement and the antropometric data of the participants were collected for calculation of BMI, using respectively a body tape measure, scale and stadiometer. Data were collected on age, gender and for the evaluation of the sedentary behavior at work, was apllied the Occupational Sitting and Physical Activity Questionnaire (OSPAQ) in a sample of 59 workers between December 2017 and January 2018. SPSS Statistics was used to perform the statistical treatment.
In the study, 39 of the individuals were females and 19 males, aged between 31-62 years. Regarding BMI, 54.3% of the participants were ≥ 25 kg/m2, relative to the WC, 25.4% of workers are at increased risk and 10.2% are at greatly increased risk of metabolic complications. The participants revealed a sedentary lifestyle in the occupational activity (1680 minutes/week in a sitting position). Through Spearmanʼs correlation coefficient, no statistically significant association between BMI, WC and occupational sedentary behavior were identified (p> 0.05).
Despite the fact that our study didnʼt show association between occupational sedentarism and the anthropometric variables, the reality is that we are faced with workers that shows occupational sedentary lifestyle, BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 and WC values associated with metabolic complications. With these alarming results, it is imperative to create work environments that promote healthy lifestyles, integrating dietitians in the Occupational Health Services.
Biography:
Sónia Fialho graduated in Dietetics at the Escola Superior de Tecnologia da Saúde de Lisboa in 2000. She began her professional activity in 2000 as a dietitian at the Centro Hospitalar de Cascais. In 2001, she joined the Quality Department of a catering company, uniself where developed with her professional career in the area of food safety. Currently collaborates as a professor of Dietetics and Nutrition Degree in Coimbra Health School.
