Motivating patients to exercise: translating high blood pressure into equivalent risk of inactivity.
OBJECTIVE
Even with the 2008 physical activity guidelines for Americans and the strong epidemiological evidence, physicians are not routinely emphasizing the importance of exercise. We try to explore an innovative way to communicate the benefits of physical activity in a term familiar to patients.


RESULTS
A cohort of 470, 163 adults from a medical screening program in Taiwan were recruited between 1994 and 2008. Their vital status was followed up by matching with the National Death File. Individuals were classified as 'inactive', 'low active', or 'fully active', with 'fully active' meeting the current exercise recommendation of 150  min per week or more. Cox proportional model was used to calculate the hazard ratio. More than one-half of the cohort was inactive (54%), with one-quarter fully active (24%). One in seven was hypertensive (14%), defined as SBP at least 140  mmHg. Among the hypertensive individuals, mortality risks were increased by 37% for the inactive. Inactive individuals had higher all-cause mortality than active ones across all blood pressure (BP) levels. At 110-119  mmHg, the inactive had a risk as high as the risk at 155  mmHg, an increased mortality risk equivalent to a risk of BP increase of 41.2 mmHg.


CONCLUSIONS
The mortality risk of being inactive was equivalent to an increase of around 40  mmHg in SBP or 20  mmHg in DBP, a number relevant to hypertensive patients. Appreciating this relationship may convince the inactive to start exercising, a behavior as important as controlling BP.
aDepartment of Risk Management and Insurance, National Kaohsiung First University of Science and Technology bDepartment of International Business, College of Management, Asia University cDepartment of Risk Management and Insurance, Feng Chia University, Taichung dInstitute of Population Health Sciences, National Health Research Institutes, Zhunan eInstitute of Sports Science, National Taiwan Sport University, Taoyuan fMJ Health Management Institution, Taipei gChina Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
Chu-Shiu
CS
Li
Chwen-Chi
CC
Liu
Min-Kuang
MK
Tsai
Ya-Ping
YP
Tai
Jackson Pui Man
JP
Wai
Chwen-Keng
CK
Tsao
Chi-Pang
CP
Wen
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001794:Blood Pressure; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination; D015331:Cohort Studies; D015444:Exercise / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012306:Risk; D057185:Sedentary Behavior; D013624:Taiwan; D055815:Young Adult