Lack of strong motivation and belief in physical activity account for most of inactivity
THURSDAY, Jan. 26 (HealthDay News) -- More than 40 percent of adults with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are inactive, with lack of both strong motivation and belief in physical activity accounting for most of the excess inactivity, according to a study published online Jan. 25 in Arthritis Care & Research.
Jungwha Lee, Ph.D., M.P.H., from the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional study, using data from 176 adults with RA, to investigate the potential public health impact of modifiable risk factors related to physical inactivity. Accelerometry data were evaluated for inactivity, and the correlation between modifiable risk factors and inactivity was assessed.
The investigators found that 42 percent of adults with RA were inactive, with lack of strong motivation for physical activity and lack of strong beliefs related to physical activity most robustly related to inactivity (adjusted odds ratio, 2.85 and 2.47, respectively; adjusted attributable fraction, 53.1 and 49.2 percent, respectively). Almost 65 percent of excess inactivity in this sample was related to these two factors.
"These results suggest interventions on lack of strong motivation and strong belief for physical activity's benefits should be considered in public health initiatives to reduce the prevalence of physical inactivity in adults with rheumatoid arthritis," the authors write.
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