Physical activity and its association with cardiovascular risk factors in Vietnam

This study examined physical activity in leisure time and at work as estimated by the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ) and the associations between both total and domain-specific physical activity with cardiovascular risk factors in a population-based Vietnamese sample. Participants (n = 1978) were 25- to 64-year-old adults selected by stratified multistage sampling. Leisure activity contributed to <5% of total moderate and vigorous activity and was not associated with cardiovascular risk factors. Total moderate and vigorous activity was associated with body composition (r = -0.16 to -0.22; P <.001), blood glucose (r = -0.07; P <.05), and total cholesterol (r = -0.17; P <.001) for men and with total cholesterol (r = -0.07; P <.05) for women after adjusting for age. Further adjustment for smoking and alcohol intake made negligible changes. These associations were largely driven by work activity, which accounted for 80% of total activity.