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Comparative Study
. 2019 Feb;71(2):178-188.
doi: 10.1002/acr.23790.

Leisure Time and Transportation Walking Among Adults With and Without Arthritis in the United States, 2010

Jennifer M Hootman  1 , Kristina A Theis  1 , Kamil E Barbour  1 , Prabasaj Paul  1 , Susan A Carlson  1
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Leisure Time and Transportation Walking Among Adults With and Without Arthritis in the United States, 2010

Jennifer M Hootman et al. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2019 Feb.

Abstract

Objective: Walking is a joint-friendly activity for adults with arthritis. The aim of this study was to estimate, among adults with arthritis, the prevalence of leisure and transportation walking overall (by arthritis status and by sociodemographic and health characteristics), the number of total minutes walking per week in each domain, and the distributions of walking bout length (i.e., short periods of activity) in minutes.

Methods: Data were obtained from the 2010 National Health Interview Survey. Prevalence estimates (percentages and 95% confidence intervals [95% CIs]) of leisure and transportation walking in the past 7 days and walking bout times were calculated (in minutes), as were multivariable Poisson regression models, which account for the complex sample design.

Results: Prevalence of leisure walking was 45.9% (95% CI 44.2-47.6) for adults with arthritis versus 51.9% (95% CI 50.9-52.9) for those without. Transportation walking prevalence was 23.0% (95% CI 21.7-24.4) for adults with arthritis versus 32.0% (95% CI 31.0-33.0) for those without. The total time of leisure walking per week did not differ in adults with arthritis compared to those without (77.3 versus 78.3 minutes, respectively; P = 0.62), while total time of transportation walking did differ (49.8 versus 58.1 minutes, respectively; P = 0.03). The most common walking bout length differed between leisure (26-40 minutes) and transportation (10-15 minutes) walking, but not by arthritis status. In separate adjusted multivariable models, obesity was consistently negatively associated with both walking outcomes, and being physically active was positively associated with both; lower extremity joint pain was not associated.

Conclusion: By adding short bouts, leisure and transportation walking could be adopted by large proportions of adults with arthritis. Existing evidence-based programs can help increase physical activity.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Distribution of mean minutes per bout of leisure (A) or transportation (B) walking, among US adult walkers with and without arthritis, NHIS, 2010.* * The initial survey lead-in question asked about walking in bouts of at least 10 minutes, however, responses of <10 minutes were allowed when individuals were later asked about bout length (n = 157 leisure, n = 189 transportation walking).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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