Search Results (6)

Intervention for hypertension in young age groups is very important. Adults in their 30s and 40s in Korea are the main producers of economic activity. Stress in work life, frequent drinking and smoking, an unhealthy diet, and a lack of physical activity are the biggest factors that increase the risk of high blood pressure. This study analyzed obesity-related body composition, physical fitness, and risk according to age and sex by analyzing population-based hypertension and physical fitness trends in individuals aged 20–59 years in 360,321 Korean adults via National Physical Award Project (NFAP) data points collected from 2012 to 2019. The functional fitness test battery for adults was composed of seven components: (a) aerobic endurance (2-min step), (b) upper body muscle strength (hand grip strength), (c) lower body muscle endurance (sit-ups), (d) flexibility (sit and reach), (e) cardiopulmonary endurance (progressive aerobic capacity endurance run), (f) body compositions (body mass index [BMI] and waist circumference [WC]), and (g) blood pressure. For all items, there was a significant difference in blood pressure according to people’s physical fitness levels. Specifically, for obesity-related BMI and WC, the higher the obesity, the higher the blood pressure (post hoc, obesity > overweight > normal > underweight). It was also confirmed that the lower the grade, that is, the weaker the grip, the higher the blood pressure (post hoc, 4 > 3 > 2 > 1). Subsequently, in identifying the risk factors for high blood pressure, the physical fitness level (Model 1) and obesity-related indicator (Model 2) differed by 1.024 and 1.335 times, respectively. Finally, it was confirmed that the risk of high blood pressure in the age and gender model (Model 3) increased by 1.388 times. In addition to the recommendation for changes in blood pressure, significant differences in blood pressure according to physical fitness and significant effects on blood pressure risk in terms of age, obesity-related body composition, and physical fitness were confirmed. Full article

Increased oxidative stress has been shown to lead to muscle damage and reduced physical performance. The antioxidant mechanism is most likely to reduce these relationships, but in the context of the action of carotenoids, more research is needed. This study aimed to investigate whether carotenoids modify the association between plasma malondialdehyde (MDA) and physical performance in Korean adolescents. The study sample consisted of 381 adolescents (164 boys, 217 girls) aged 13–18, who participated in the 2018 National Fitness Award Project. We quantified α-carotene, β-carotene, β-cryptoxanthin, lutein, zeaxanthin, lycopene, and MDA levels in plasma using HPLC with photodiode array detection. Among boys but not girls, plasma MDA level was negatively associated (β = −0.279, p = 0.0030) with total plasma carotenoid levels and marginally negatively associated (β = −0.907, p = 0.0876) with absolute hand grip strength. After adjustment for covariates in boys, the MDA level was negatively associated with absolute hand grip strength and relative hand grip strength; this association was observed only in groups with individual carotenoid and total carotenoid values below the median. These findings support a significant association between plasma MDA level and hand grip strength, and this association has been potentially modified by plasma levels of carotenoids in Korean male adolescents. Full article

CoME EASY is a European Union H2020 project started in May 2018, which aims to help local public authorities secure a more sustainable energy and climate policy, in line with the New Green Deal and Fit for 55 initiatives. The main idea of CoME EASY is to offer an integrated package of on-line tools that synchronize European Energy Awards (EEA) with Covenant of Mayors (CoM), ISOs, Smart Cities, and other initiatives that allow local communities to have multiple commitments for energy efficiency and climate with less effort. EEA is a quality management and awarding system for municipalities and regions, which started in 1988 in Switzerland and now includes more than 1700 municipalities from 8 countries and 10 new pilot countries with more than 65 million people belonging to the local communities that are involved. There are six main areas of activity in EEA (Development and Spatial Planning Strategy, Municipal Buildings and Facilities, Supply and Disposal, Mobility, Internal Organization, Communication and Cooperation) through which municipalities are driven by advisors so as to receive a score in percentage for each area, which further allows them to compare with other communities. Romania has been an EEA pilot country since 2016 and, despite initial problems in implementing the system, now has three communities, Iași (Romania second largest city), Alba Iulia (the so-called other Romanian capital), and Vama Buzăului, included in CoME EASY. These cities tested frameworking tools and managed to be assessed with EAA tools, and developed a Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plan synchronously. Owing to the CoME EASY tools, all of these communities were able to deliver key performance indicators that are in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Full article

Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is a strong and meaningful indicator for predicting mortality, including cardiovascular disease, as well as simple physical capacity. Healthy eating is thought to be one of the crucial factors associated with an individual’s CRF status, although little research has been done on the relationship between healthy eating and CRF. This study aimed to investigate the association between overall diet quality and CRF among Korean adults. The study involved 937 adults (380 men and 557 women) aged 19‒64 years who participated in the 2014‒2015 Korea Institute of Sports Science Fitness Standards project. Diet quality was assessed by the recommended food score (RFS), and CRF was determined by maximal oxygen uptake (VO_2max) during a treadmill exercise test. Multiple regression model analyses were stratified by age (19–34, 35–49, and 50–64 years) and sex, because both factors greatly influence CRF. After multivariate adjustment, only the 19‒34 age group in both sexes showed a positive association between RFS and VO_2max. Additionally, when physical activity was adjusted, it was still significant in men but only marginally related in women. Our results suggest that better overall diet quality may be associated with a better CRF among young adults aged 19‒34 years in Korea. Full article

Adolescent physical performance is not only dependent on exercise but also on the role of antioxidants obtained through a healthy diet. However, few studies have specifically identified the relationship between carotenoids, a common antioxidant, and physical performance. This cross-sectional study aims to investigate the association between the level of carotenoids in the blood and physical performance among Korean adolescents aged 13 to 18 years. The study sample consisted of 450 participants (190 males, 260 females) from the 2018 National Fitness Award project. In boys, multiple regression analysis after adjustment for age, body mass index (BMI), smoking, drinking, and physical activity revealed that the α-carotene level was positively associated with a 20-m progressive aerobic cardiovascular endurance run (PACER) (β = 5.350, p < 0.05) and estimated maximal oxygen consumption (VO_2max) (β = 1.049, p < 0.05). In girls, after adjustment for age, BMI, smoking, drinking, and physical activity, the levels of α-carotene were positively associated with a 20-m PACER (β = 3.290, p < 0.05), VO_2max (β = 0.644, p < 0.05) and curl-up (β = 5.782, p < 0.05), and β-carotene (β = 2.983, p < 0.05) and total carotenoids (β = 4.248, p < 0.05) were positively associated with curl-up. Our results suggest that an increased level of carotenoids in the blood may be associated with better physical performance among adolescents in Korea. Full article

There is a growing body of evidence that links nutrition to muscle mass and function in the elderly, suggesting that it has an important role to play both in the prevention and management of age-related sarcopenia. Some nutrients have been studied, but less is known about the influence of overall diet quality on the loss of skeletal muscle mass and function. This study investigated the interrelationship between the recommended food score (RFS), as an indicator of overall diet quality, and muscle mass function among the Korean elderly. The sample consisted of 521 participants (263 men and 258 women), aged >65 years, who participated in the 2014–2015 National Fitness Award project. Appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASM) was assessed by bioelectrical impedance analysis. Low muscle mass was defined as having an ASM corrected for height lower than the cutoff value established by the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People. Muscle function, assessed by handgrip strength (HGS), was defined as low if it was below the 20th percentile of elderly men and women. Low muscle mass-function, defined as low muscle mass with low muscle strength (HGS), was found in 29 men (11.0%) and 22 women (8.5%). In elderly men, the low muscle mass-function group had significantly lower RFS values than the normal group after adjustments for age, body fat percentage, drinking, smoking, education, and physical activity (p = 0.019). However, there was no association between RFS and muscle mass-function in elderly women. Our findings suggest that better diet quality may be associated with higher muscle mass in elderly Korean men. Full article