Percentage of Deaths Associated With Inadequate Physical Activity in the United States
ORIGINAL RESEARCH — Volume 15 — March 29, 2018
PEER REVIEWED
Figure. Prevalence of physical activity among decedents and survivors aged 25 years or older (N = 67,762), by age group, National Health Interview Survey Linked Mortality Files, 1990–1991. Adults who were excluded from the sample were those 1) categorized as physically disabled or whose disability status was unknown; 2) missing mortality or time scale data; missing data on physical activity, covariates, or both; and who died the same quarter of the year as interviewed. Individuals were categorized into 4 activity levels: inactive (no physical activity reported in the past 2 weeks), insufficiently active (some activity but <150 min/wk of moderate-intensity equivalent activity), sufficiently active (150–300 min/wk of moderate-intensity equivalent activity), and highly active (>300 min/wk of moderate-intensity equivalent activity). Abbreviation: CI, confidence interval.
| Age Group | Decedents | Survivors |
|---|---|---|
| Prevalence of Physical Activity Group, % (95% CI) | ||
| 25–39 y | ||
| Inactive | 37.6 (34.3–41.0) | 32.0 (30.8–33.3) |
| Insufficiently active | 25.1 (22.5–27.8) | 28.3 (27.6–28.9) |
| Sufficiently active | 15.4 (13.2–17.8) | 18.1 (17.5–18.6) |
| Highly active | 22.0 (19.4–24.8) | 21.6 (20.8–22.4) |
| 40–69 y | ||
| Inactive | 38.8 (37.2–40.4) | 32.9 (31.8–34.1) |
| Insufficiently active | 24.7 (23.6–25.8) | 26.6 (25.9–27.4) |
| Sufficiently active | 15.5 (14.7–16.4) | 18.6 (18.0–19.2) |
| Highly active | 21.0 (19.9–22.2) | 21.8 (21.1–22.6) |
| ≥70 y | ||
| Inactive | 44.9 (43.4–46.4) | 37.5 (34.0–41.1) |
| Insufficiently active | 16.3 (15.5–17.2) | 17.4 (15.2–19.7) |
| Sufficiently active | 13.6 (12.8–14.5) | 14.9 (12.9–17.2) |
| Highly active | 25.2 (23.9–26.5) | 30.2 (27.2–33.5) |
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