title: The effects of regular physical activity on adult-onset asthma incidence in women.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Potential benefit of physical activity in asthma incidence is scarce and controversial. We aimed to assess the association between regular physical activity and adult-onset asthma.
  
  
  METHODS
  We included 51,080 women from a French cohort study, and followed them from 1993 to 2003. Physical activity at baseline was defined as time spent in household and leisure time physical activity, converted to metabolic equivalents (METs), and categorised in tertiles. Adult-onset asthma during follow-up was defined according to the American Thoracic Society criteria.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean age at baseline was 53 years, 13% of women were current smokers, 19% were overweight or obese, and 56% were postmenopausal; 512 (1%) developed asthma. No association was found between physical activity and asthma incidence in the crude or in the adjusted Cox regression model (adjusted HR 1.03 and 1.01 for the 2nd and 3rd tertiles compared to the 1st tertile, p for trend = 0.979).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Physical activity is not related to adult-onset asthma in this cohort of French middle-aged women.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology, Doctor Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Benet
authors.forename: Raphaëlle
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Varraso
authors.forename: Francine
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Kauffmann
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Romieu
authors.forename: Josep M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Antó
authors.forename: Françoise
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Clavel-Chapelon
authors.forename: Judith
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Garcia-Aymerich
mesh_terms: D017668:Age of Onset; D001249:Asthma / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000534:rehabilitation; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D005602:France / Q000453:epidemiology; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008875:Middle Aged; D009043:Motor Activity; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000453:epidemiology