A Comparative Epidemiological Study on the Effects of Physical Fitness on Health Level

Abstract

Clinical tests, a questionnaire on life style and mental health, and physical fitness tests were conducted on 3, 132 individuals (1, 796 men and 1, 336 women) to find the relationships between physical fitness level and life style, mental health, or cardiovascular risk factors among Japanese. Individuals with an advanced physical fitness level also exhibited optimum mental health: the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for their sensation of fatigue (fast recovery) was 1.16 (95% Cl = 1.00 to 1.35) and that for mood recovery (fast) was 1.29 (95% Cl = 1.12 to 1.49). Among those with an advanced physical fitness level, the following were rare (OR): daily smoking [0.78]; obesity (over 120%) [0.73 (95% Cl = 0.62 to 0.87)]; thick subcutaneous fat (over 20 mm on the back) [0.77 (95% Cl = 0.66 to 0.90)]; high blood sugar level [0.64 (95% Cl = 0.50 to 0.82)]; and hypertension [0.67 (95% Cl = 0.49 to 0.91)]. These are risks for circulatory diseases. These data show that risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease are more common in those with a low physical fitness level. J Epidemiol, 1996 ; 6 : 120-127.