Design: This study was designed to evaluate, in a cohort of 1039 middle-aged men, the interaction between the duration and intensity of physical activity performed either during leisure time (competitive sports, walking, cycling) or work, and principal coronary disease risk factors.
Method: A cohort of subjects aged 45-64 years were recruited in 1993. Subjects included both individuals who were physically active and those who were sedentary, and were age-matched.
Results: Leisure time physical activity was inversely related to levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides, and fibrinogen, and to diastolic and systolic blood pressure. High-density lipoprotein cholesterol level was directly related to leisure time activity. Working activity, even if strenuous, was not related to risk profile. Leisure time activity did not favorably influence lipid levels in smokers, obese subjects or those with known dyslipidemia.
Conclusions: This study further reinforces the use of continuous diet and drug treatment in dyslipidemic subjects and in smokers, who have to refrain from smoking if they are to benefit fully from the effects of physical activity.