Abstract
Introduction: Habitual exercise may amplify the respiratory uptake of air pollutants in the lung, exacerbating the adverse effects of air pollution. However, it is unclear whether this can reduce the health benefits of habitual exercise (referred to as leisure-time exercise). Thus, the combined effects of habitual exercise and chronic exposure to ambient fine particulate matter 2.5 on cardiovascular mortality were examined among adults in Taiwan.
Methods: A total of 384,128 adults were recruited between 2001 and 2016 and followed up to May 31, 2019. Participants’ vital status was obtained by matching their unique identification numbers with records of cardiovascular death in the National Death Registry of Taiwan. A time-varying Cox regression model was used to analyze the data. Analyses were conducted in 2021.
Results: Cardiovascular death risks were inversely associated with habitual exercise and positively associated with chronic exposure to particulate matter 2.5. The beneficial effects of habitual exercise on cardiovascular mortality were not modified by chronic exposure to particulate matter 2.5. Inactive participants with high particulate matter 2.5 exposure exhibited a 123% higher risk of cardiovascular death than high-exercise-group participants exposed to low levels of particulate matter 2.5 (95% CI=89, 163).
Conclusions: High level of habitual exercise combined with low exposure level of ambient particulate matter 2.5 is associated with the lowest risk of cardiovascular death. A higher level of habitual exercise is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular death at all levels of particulate matter 2.5 exposure studied. The results indicate that habitual exercise is a safe health promotion strategy even for people residing in relatively polluted regions.
Methods: A total of 384,128 adults were recruited between 2001 and 2016 and followed up to May 31, 2019. Participants’ vital status was obtained by matching their unique identification numbers with records of cardiovascular death in the National Death Registry of Taiwan. A time-varying Cox regression model was used to analyze the data. Analyses were conducted in 2021.
Results: Cardiovascular death risks were inversely associated with habitual exercise and positively associated with chronic exposure to particulate matter 2.5. The beneficial effects of habitual exercise on cardiovascular mortality were not modified by chronic exposure to particulate matter 2.5. Inactive participants with high particulate matter 2.5 exposure exhibited a 123% higher risk of cardiovascular death than high-exercise-group participants exposed to low levels of particulate matter 2.5 (95% CI=89, 163).
Conclusions: High level of habitual exercise combined with low exposure level of ambient particulate matter 2.5 is associated with the lowest risk of cardiovascular death. A higher level of habitual exercise is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular death at all levels of particulate matter 2.5 exposure studied. The results indicate that habitual exercise is a safe health promotion strategy even for people residing in relatively polluted regions.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 250-258 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | American journal of preventive medicine |
| Volume | 64 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| Early online date | 19 Oct 2022 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Feb 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:The authors are grateful to the Health Data Science Centre, Ministry of Health and Welfare in Taiwan for assistance in mortality data linkage. Any interpretation or conclusion described in this paper does not represent the views of MJ Health Research Foundation. Part of the data was provided by MJ Health Research Foundation (Authorization Code MJHR2019006A). This work was supported by RGC-General Research Fund (14603019) and Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (2019A1515011697). CG is supported by the RGC Postdoctoral Fellowship Scheme of the University Grants Committee of Hong Kong. No financial disclosures were reported by the authors of this paper. Yacong Bo: Data curation, Formal analysis, Investigation, Methodology, Writing–original draft. Tsung Yu: Investigation, Project administration, Resources, Supervision, Writing–review and editing. Cui Guo: Data curation, Investigation, Methodology, Visualization, Writing–review and editing. Changqing Lin: Investigation, Methodology, Resources, Visualization, Writing–review and editing. Hsiao Ting Yang: Data curation, Investigation, Methodology, Writing–review and editing. Ly-yun Chang: Methodology, Project administration, Resources, Supervision, Writing–review and editing. G.N. Thomas: Conceptualization, Methodology, Supervision, Writing–review and editing. Tony Tam: Methodology, Project administration, Resources, Supervision, Writing–review and editing. Alexis K.H. Lau: Methodology, Project administration, Resources, Supervision, Writing–review and editing. Xiang Qian Lao: Conceptualization, Funding acquisition, Methodology, Project administration, Resources, Supervision, Writing–review and editing.
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© 2022 American Journal of Preventive Medicine