Significant Decline in Fitness among Canadians

Between 1981 and 2009, fitness levels of Canadian children and youth, as well as those of adults, declined significantly, according to the first findings from the Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS).

The CHMS captured key information relevant to the health of Canadians by means of direct physical measurements, such as body measurements, cardio-respiratory fitness, musculoskeletal fitness and blood pressure.

In Canada, for the past two decades, assessments of fitness levels of Canadians have relied almost exclusively on the body mass index (BMI) because it can easily be calculated from height and weight. The BMI has shown that Canadian adults have become heavier over the past 25 years.

However, the BMI is only one indicator. A variety of other measures, therefore, are required to gain a more complete understanding of fitness levels associated with current and future risk of disease. These complementary measures are provided by the CHMS, in which survey respondents underwent body composition measurements and participated in fitness tests in mobile examination centres.

Data from the CHMS show that fitness levels of children and youth have declined significantly since 1981, regardless of age or sex. Fitness levels of adults have also declined, particularly among younger adults.

Among youth aged 15 to 19, the percentage whose waist circumference put them at an increased or high risk of health problems more than tripled.

Among adults, decreases in fitness levels over the same period were particularly pronounced for young adults aged 20 to 39.

Within this group, the percentage with a waist circumference that placed them at a high risk for health problems more than quadrupled. The proportions went from 5% to 21% among men, and from 6% to 31% among women.

Roughly 3% of the adult population had high blood pressure that was undiagnosed in 2009.

Body composition and fitness of children and youth

The BMI is calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by height in metres squared.

During the survey period of 2007 to 2009, slightly more than 17% of Canadian children and youth were overweight and 9% were obese.

Survey results showed a significant deterioration in the body composition of children aged 6 to 19 between 1981 and 2009, regardless of sex or age.

At the age of 12, Canadian boys and girls are now taller than they were in 1981. However, rates of childhood obesity and overweight have risen because of increased body fat, not greater muscularity.

Among teen boys in the age group 15 to 19, the proportion classified as overweight or obese rose from 14% to 31% between 1981 and 2009. Among teen girls, it increased from 14% to 25%.

Among both teen boys and girls, the proportion in the waist circumference category who were at high or increased risk of health problems more than tripled.

Also, the strength and flexibility of boys and girls has declined significantly since 1981.

Body composition and fitness of adults

During the 2007-to-2009 period, just under 38% of adults were at a healthy weight. About 1% were underweight, 37% were overweight and 24% were obese.

Proportionally, many more adult men than adult women were overweight. However, roughly equal proportions of both sexes were rated as obese.

Moving beyond the BMI, abdominal obesity, as reflected by a high waist circumference, is now regarded as the factor that indicates the greatest health risk related to obesity.

On the basis of their waist circumference, 31% of women and 21% of men aged 20 to 39 were considered to be at high risk for health problems. By the age of 60 to 69, the proportions were more than twice as high: 65% of women and 52% of men.

About 32% of Canadian men and women aged 15 to 69 were categorized as having a "good" health benefit level, based on their aerobic fitness ratings. Larger proportions of adults have a "fair" and "needs improvement" rating (40% of men and 47% of women) than an "excellent" or "very good" rating (27% of men and 22% of women).

Aerobic fitness was assessed by calculating the predicted maximal aerobic power, an estimate of the maximum volume of oxygen an individual will intake per minute of exercise relative to their body weight.

Among adults, decreases in fitness levels between 1981 and 2009 were particularly pronounced for young adults aged 20 to 39. Within this group, the percentage with a waist circumference that placed them at a high risk for health problems more than quadrupled, from 5% to 21% among men, and from 6% to 31% among women.

At the age of 40 to 69, the percentage of males and females whose waist circumference placed them at a high risk for health problems more than doubled between 1981 and 2009.

Similarly, the percentage whose body composition was classified as "fair/needs improvement" rose fourfold among young adult men, from 5% to 20%, and sevenfold among young adult women, from 4% to 29%. Body composition includes the BMI, waist circumference and skin-fold measurements.

Blood pressure

In 2009, more than 90% of the adult Canadian population aged 18 to 79 had an acceptable blood pressure, defined as less than 140/90, that is, 140 millimetres of mercury (systolic) over 90 millimetres of mercury (diastolic).

Of this adult population, 6.4%, or just fewer than 1.6 million people, were measured with high blood pressure, that is 140/90 or higher. Half of them, an estimated 762,000 or about 3% of the adult population, were unaware of their condition.

High blood pressure increases greatly with age. Among adults aged 60 to 79, just over 17% had a measured blood pressure of 140/90 or higher.

(Source:Statistics Canada, Jan. 18, 2010)

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