Do all activities “weigh” equally?: how different physical activities differ as predictors of weight

Lordan, Grace and Pakrashi, Debayan (2015) Do all activities “weigh” equally?: how different physical activities differ as predictors of weight. Risk Analysis, 35 (11). pp. 2069-2086. ISSN 0272-4332

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Abstract

In Britain, it is recommended that, to stay healthy, adults should do 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity every week. The recommendations provided by the U.K. government, however, remain silent in regard to the type of activity that should be done. Using the annual Health Survey for England we compare how different types of physical activities predict a person's weight. In particular, we consider clinically measured body mass index and waist circumference. We document mean slopes emanating from ordinary least squares regressions with these measures as the dependent variables. We show that individuals who walk at a brisk or fast pace are more likely to have a lower weight when compared to individuals doing other activities. Additionally, we highlight that the association between physical activity and weight is stronger for females and individuals over the age of 50. Our overall conclusions are robust to a number of specifications.

Item Type:	Article
Official URL:	http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(IS...
Additional Information:	© 2015 Society for Risk Analysis.
Divisions:	Social Policy LSE Health
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HN Social history and conditions. Social problems. Social reform R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA0421 Public health. Hygiene. Preventive Medicine
JEL classification:	I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I1 - Health > I12 - Health Production: Nutrition, Mortality, Morbidity, Suicide, Substance Abuse and Addiction, Disability, and Economic Behavior I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I1 - Health > I18 - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J1 - Demographic Economics > J18 - Public Policy
Date Deposited:	17 Sep 2015 15:20
Last Modified:	20 Dec 2024 00:33
Funders:	Nuffield Health
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/63625

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