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PubMedDate not supplied

American Cancer Society Guidelines on Nutrition and Physical Activity for cancer prevention: reducing the risk of cancer with healthy food choices and physical activity.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) publishes Nutrition and Physical Activity Guidelines to serve as a foundation for its communication, policy, and community strategies and ultimately, to affect dietary and physical activity patterns among Americans. These Guidelines, published every 5 years, are developed by a national panel of experts in cancer research, prevention, epidemiology, public health, and policy, and as such, they represent the most current scientific evidence related to dietary and activity patterns and cancer risk. The ACS Guidelines include recommendations for individual choices regarding diet and physical activity patterns, but those choices occur within a community context that either facilitates or interferes with healthy behaviors. Community efforts are essential to create a social environment that promotes healthy food choices and physical activity. Therefore, this committee presents one key recommendation for community action to accompany the four recommendations for individual choices to reduce cancer risk. This recommendation for community action recognizes that a supportive social environment is indispensable if individuals at all levels of society are to have genuine opportunities to choose healthy behaviors. The ACS Guidelines are consistent with guidelines from the American Heart Association and the American Diabetes Association for the prevention of coronary heart disease and diabetes, as well as for general health promotion, as defined by the Department of Health and Human Services' 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Alcohol Drinking↗

PubMed1989

The effects of physical training on physical fitness tests and auditory and visual reaction times of volleyball players.

Twenty male volleyball players were taken for this study and during an 8-week-period they did physical conditioning exercises by weight training 5 days a week. Physical fitness tests, auditory and visual reaction times were measured at the beginning and at the end of training period. When results statistically analysed, it was observed that physical conditioning exercises affected their physical fitness positively and moreover auditory and visual reaction times were shortened.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Childhood participation in organized school sports and physical education as precursors of adult physical activity.

Increased levels of physical activity are associated with improved health. However, the determinants of an active lifestyle are unknown. Participation in school sports and physical education during childhood and adolescence are frequently mentioned as factors likely to promote more active lifestyles in adulthood. If this is true, public policy should more vigorously promote broad participation in school sports and physical education. However, review of the available literature reveals only six papers that address this issue directly, and all six have important methodological limitations. The study that provides the strongest support provides information only on sports participation during college, an age at which behavior patterns may already be firmly established. Therefore, more research in this area is needed. Future studies must consider definitions, confounding variables, recall bias, selection bias, content, and quality of school sports and physical education programs.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2026

Virtual reality physical education and adolescents' exercise interest and physical fitness: An explanatory sequential mixed-methods randomized trial with exploratory pathway analysis.

Traditional physical education (PE) faces declining student interest and limited fitness gains. Virtual reality (VR) offers immersive, gamified experiences, but evidence regarding its effectiveness and explanatory pathways remains limited. This explanatory sequential mixed-methods randomized trial assigned 360 adolescents (aged 13-16) from three middle schools to either VR-supported PE (n = 180) or conventional PE (n = 180) for 12 weeks, with a 4-week follow-up. Outcomes included exercise interest (validated scale), physical fitness (coordination via MABC-2, cardiorespiratory endurance via the 20-m shuttle run, explosive power via the standing long jump, and speed via the 10-m sprint), and accelerometer-measured physical activity. The qualitative component involved 38 unique students: 32 completed individual semi-structured interviews, and six additional students participated only in focus groups. Three-level linear mixed-effects models and exploratory structural equation modeling were used. The VR group showed significantly greater improvements in exercise interest (d = 0.78), coordination (d = 0.62), cardiorespiratory endurance (d = 0.55), and speed (d = 0.48) than the control group (all p < 0.001), but not in explosive power (d = 0.12, p = 0.148). Effects were partially retained at follow-up (interest d = 0.65, coordination d = 0.48, endurance d = 0.42, and speed d = 0.30), a pattern not fully consistent with a purely novelty-driven explanation. Exploratory mediation identified exercise interest as a statistically compatible explanatory pathway (indirect effect = 0.34, 95% CI [0.22, 0.46]), although the timing of measurement precludes causal interpretation. Qualitative findings contextualized these results by highlighting immersion, feedback, self-efficacy, and perceived transfer. VR-supported PE may enhance adolescents' exercise interest and selected fitness dimensions, but its limited effect on explosive power and possible novelty contribution indicate that it should complement, rather than replace, conventional PE. Longer-term studies are needed.

Humans↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Physical activity and exercise to achieve health-related physical fitness components.

To improve health and fitness effectively through physical activity or exercise, we need to understand how this comes about. For many of these changes, the stimulus has been grossly defined in terms of type, intensity, duration, and frequency of exercise, but for others a dose-response relationship has not been determined. Physical activity that appears to provide the most diverse health benefits consists of dynamic, rhythmical contractions of large muscles that transport the body over distance or against gravity at a moderate intensity relative to capacity for extended periods of time during which 200 to 400 kilocalories (or 4 kilocalories per kilogram of body weight) are expended. For optimal health benefits, such activity should be performed daily or at least every other day and should be supplemented with some heavy resistance and flexibility exercises. The greatest benefits are achieved when the least active individuals become moderately active; much less benefit is apparent when the already active individual becomes extremely active. Overexertion or inappropriate exercise can produce significant health risks. Research is needed to characterize better the health-promoting features of physical activity and exercise.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Prediction of physical activity and physical work capacity (PWC150) in young adulthood from childhood and adolescence with consideration of parental measures.

The 12-year prediction of physical activity level and submaximal aerobic fitness observed during young adulthood was quantified from childhood and parental measures. The sample consisted of 153 children and adolescents of the Quebec Family Study who were evaluated at baseline and reassessed 12 years later, as young adults. Physical work capacity at a heart rate of 150 beats x min(-1) (PWC150) was measured using cycle ergometry. A 3-day activity record was used to estimate daily energy expenditure (DEE), inactive time (IA), and time spent in moderate-to-vigorous activity (MVPA). Spearman partial inter-age correlations, controlling for length of follow-up and age at baseline, indicated better tracking for PWC150 (0.24 and 0.46, males and females, respectively) than for indicators of physical activity (0.07 < or = r < or = 0.25, males; 0.06 < or = r < or = 0.22, females). Multiple regression analyses indicated that parental measurements of activity and PWC150 did not add any predictive value, with the exception of paternal DEE, which accounted for 8% of the variance in males. There is moderately high stability of submaximal work capacity and lower tracking of physical activity from childhood and adolescence into young adulthood.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Minor physical anomalies in mentally healthy subjects: Internal consistency of the Waldrop Physical Anomaly Scale.

The aim of the study was to investigate the prevalence of minor physical anomalies in mentally healthy subjects by using the Waldrop Physical Anomaly Scale and to assess the reliability (internal consistency) of the scale. The subjects were 82 mentally healthy individuals (42 men, 40 women) of Bulgarian origin who were examined for minor physical anomalies. Mentally healthy individuals show a low mean score of minor physical anomalies. The anomalies prevail in the craniofacial region. The correlations between the anomalies are low, which implies poor internal consistency of the scale, probably due to the heterogeneity of the anomalies in terms of location, character, and time of prenatal development and adversity. Providing a base for comparative studies of developmental disorders, the findings infer the necessity of a more reliable scale for examination of informative morphogenetic variants which can distinguish between minor malformations and phenogenetic variants and suggest the period of prenatal adversity.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

The group psychotherapy and home-based physical exercise (group-hope) trial in cancer survivors: physical fitness and quality of life outcomes.

Physical exercise has been shown to enhance quality of life (QOL) in cancer survivors using pretest-posttest designs and compared to usual care (i.e. no intervention). In the present study, we conducted a randomized controlled trial to determine if exercise could improve QOL in cancer survivors beyond the known benefits of group psychotherapy (GP). We matched 22 GP classes (N=108) on content and then randomly assigned 11 (n=48) to GP alone and 11 (n=60) to GP plus home-based, moderate-intensity exercise (GP+EX). Participants completed a physical fitness test and QOL measures (e.g. Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy scales) at the beginning and end of GP classes (about 10 weeks). We had excellent recruitment (81%), retention (89%), and adherence (84%) rates and a modest contamination (22%) rate. Using intention-to-treat repeated measures analyses of variance, we found significant Time by Condition interactions for functional well-being, fatigue, and sum of skinfolds. We also found borderline significant interactions for physical well-being, satisfaction with life, and flexibility. All interactions favored the GP+EX condition. We conclude that a home-based, moderate intensity exercise program may im-prove QOL in cancer survivors beyond the benefits of GP, particularly in relation to physical and functional well-being.

Adult↗

PubMed1993

Changes in erythrocyte membrane phospholipid composition induced by physical training and physical exercise.

The effects were investigated of physical training and exercise on lipids of the erythrocyte membrane of healthy students. Membrane cholesterol and phospholipids were analysed simultaneously by thin-layer chromatography with a flame ionization detector and the fatty acid composition was determined by gas chromatography. Physically trained students had similar physical characteristics to control students but a significantly higher aerobic capacity, estimated as the maximal oxygen uptake and anaerobic threshold. Of the phospholipids examined, only the content of membrane phosphatidylserine was significantly lower in the trained group. Fatty acid analysis showed that the amount of docosahexaenoic acid in membrane phosphatidylserine was lower in the trained group. There was no significant difference between the fatty acid compositions of membrane phosphatidylcholine in the two groups. Maximal exercise decreased membrane phosphatidylserine in the control group but not in the trained group. It also significantly decreased the relative amounts of unsaturated fatty acids in both phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylserine in the untrained group. Maximal oxygen uptake was negatively correlated with the amount of erythrocyte membrane phosphatidylserine. These results would indicate that both physical training and acute exercise decrease phosphatidylserine and polyunsaturated fatty acids in erythrocyte membranes, possibly due to lipid peroxidation, suggesting limited enhancement of erythrocyte defense mechanisms in adaptation to chronic oxidative stress.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Relationships between physical activity, physical fitness, muscle strength and nutritional state in 5- to 11-year-old children.

The purpose of the present study was to assess different aspects of physical activity and fitness in order to develop a basis for sport programmes for overweight and obese children. Eighty-eight prepubertal children (49 boys, 39 girls, 4.8-11.4 years old, 61% obese, 14% overweight and 25% normal weight) were examined. Body composition was assessed by combined use of anthropometrics and bioelectrical impedance analysis. Resting energy expenditure (REE) and total energy expenditure (TEE) were measured by indirect calorimetry (IC) and individually calibrated 24-h heart rate (HR) monitoring, respectively. Activity-related energy expenditure (AEE) and physical activity level (PAL) were calculated from TEE and REE. Fitness [assessed by O2-pulse, respiratory exchange ratio (RER) at submaximal work intensities] was determined by ergometry. The maximal isometric muscle strength of the legs (m. quadriceps, Fa max, m. ischiocruralis, Fb max) was measured by computer tensiometry. Children were grouped according to their nutritional state, AEE, O2-pulse and muscle strength. When compared with normal weight children, obese and overweight children had increased fat mass (FM), fat-free mass (FFM), waist-to-hip ratio and REE, but no group differences were observed for TEE, AEE, and PAL. Obese and overweight children spent more hours per day watching TV. After correction for body weight and FFM, no group differences in REE were observed, but normal weight children had a higher O2-pulse than overweight and obese children. By contrast, RER was increased in the latter group. The fittest group had the lowest body weight, BMI, FM and FFM. Children with a low O2-pulse spent more hours per day watching TV. Grouping children according to their degree of muscle strength, younger children (4-7.5 years) did not show group differences in nutritional state, energy expenditure, physical activity and fitness. However, in the group of 7.6- to 11-year-old children, those with the greatest muscle strength and FFM had reduced BMI, skin folds, FM and FFM. FM correlated inversely with O2-pulse, but was not associated with TEE, AEE, PAL or muscle strength. By contrast TV consumption was positively associated with FM. To summarize, overweight and obese children were less fit and watched more TV than their normal weight counterparts. FM did not correspond to TEE, AEE or PAL. Muscle strength was not associated with FM in young children, but was inversely associated with FM in older children. Our cross-sectional data are consistent with the idea that increased fitness and reduced physical inactivity may prevent children from being overweight.

Body Composition↗

PubMed2006

Physical activity stage of readiness predicts moderate-vigorous physical activity participation among morbidly obese gastric bypass surgery candidates.

BACKGROUND: Despite the ever-growing body of literature linking stage of physical activity readiness (PAR) with physical activity (PA) participation in overweight and obese populations, this relationship has not been examined among individuals seeking gastric bypass surgery (GBS). Furthermore, little is known about the specific intensity of activities undertaken by GBS candidates. Therefore, this study sought to determine whether greater PAR was associated with greater moderate-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) participation among GBS candidates. METHODS: The International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), administered 2-weeks presurgery to 87 GBS candidates, determined MVPA participation using a formula based on metabolic equivalents (MET)-minutes/week. A stages-of-change measure categorized each candidate into one of five PAR stages: precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, or maintenance. RESULTS: The proportion of individuals in each PAR stage and the corresponding MVPA was as follows: contemplation (5.7%, 48.0 MET-minutes/week), preparation (46%, 394.0 MET-minutes/week), action (34.5%, 1614.0 MET-minutes/week), and maintenance (13.8%, 2056.7 MET-minutes/week). MVPA was significantly greater in candidates in the action or maintenance stages compared with those in contemplation (P =.008 and .025 for action and maintenance, respectively) or preparation (P < .0001 and .006 for action and maintenance, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: This study is the first to demonstrate a relationship between PAR and PA among GBS candidates, with 100% of the sample reporting either an intention to engage in PA or actual engagement in PA. This finding, coupled with the recent support for the importance of PA for weight loss/maintenance in GBS patients, warrants an investigation into the effectiveness of presurgical and postsurgical PA interventions matched to patients' PAR levels.

Adult↗

PubMed1993

Association among serum lipid and lipoprotein concentrations and physical activity, physical fitness, and body composition in young children.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationships among indicators of physical activity, physical fitness, and body composition with serum lipid and lipoprotein levels in young children. DESIGN: Cross-sectional and 1-year prospective cohort. SETTING: Studies of Child Activity and Nutrition (SCAN) program, Galveston, Tex. SUBJECTS: One hundred twenty-three 4- or 5-year-old black, Hispanic (of Mexican origin), and white children. MEASUREMENTS: Body composition, resting heart rate, and cardiovascular fitness variables and serum lipid and lipoprotein levels were measured at age 3 or 4 years (study year 1) and at age 4 or 5 years (study year 2), and day-long heart rate was measured and the Children's Activity Rating Scale was administered between study years 1 and 2. RESULTS: Year-1 waist/hip ratios were inversely correlated with total serum cholesterol (TSC) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels. Mean activity level was inversely correlated with waist/hip ratios. On the basis of multiple regression analysis, the sum of seven skin-fold measurements, height, and gender explained 15.4% of the variation in triglyceride levels. The sum of seven skin-fold measurements was inversely correlated with the high-density lipoprotein (HDL) level. Resting heart rate, waist/hip ratio, and the slope of the exercise heart rate during fitness testing explained 19.5% of the variation in the concentration of an HDL subclass, HDL2. These children's levels of physical activity were associated with higher fitness levels. Year-1 waist/hip ratios and year-2 sum of seven skin-fold measurements were positively correlated with the LDL/HDL and TSC/HDL ratios. CONCLUSION: Higher levels of cardiovascular fitness and lower levels of fatness were associated with more favorable serum lipid and lipoprotein levels in these young children. Physical activity appeared to have an indirect association with serum lipid and lipoprotein values through its relationship with higher fitness levels and lower levels of fatness.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed1999

Seven-year changes in physical fitness, physical activity, and lipid profile in the CARDIA study. Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults.

PURPOSE: To relate seven year changes in physical fitness and physical activity in the young adult population to changes in the plasma lipid profile and to examine the influence of weight change on those relationships. METHODS: The participants in this observational study were the 1777 black and white men and women, ages 18-30 at entry into the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) cohort, who completed a symptom-limited graded treadmill exercise test and had an overnight fasting blood draw at both the Baseline (1985-86) and Year 7 (1992-93) exams. CARDIA, a longitudinal study of the relationships of lifestyle and physiological variables to the development of coronary heart disease risk factors, consists of population-based cohorts in Birmingham, Alabama, Minneapolis, Minnesota and Chicago, Illinois and a cohort recruited from the membership of a large, pre-paid health care plan, broadly representative of the population, in Oakland, California. RESULTS: All race/gender groups experienced mean decreases in physical fitness and self-reported physical activity and increases in weight. Decreased fitness was associated with decreased high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), and conversely, increased fitness was associated with increased HDL-C. The correlation coefficients of change in fitness with change in HDL-C ranged from 0.17 in white men and black women to 0.24 in white women (P < 0.001 for all race/gender groups). Change in fitness was minimally correlated with change in low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) in all groups (r ranged from -0.09 in black women to -0.20 in white women), triglycerides (TG) in men and white women (r ranged from -0.10 to -0.15), and total cholesterol (TC) in white men and women (r = -0.11 and -0.15, respectively). The magnitude of these correlations was further reduced with adjustment for weight change. Correlations between change in activity and change in lipid and lipoprotein values were generally weak or nonexistent, except for the suggestion of a small, direct relationship with change in HDL-C in black and white women (r = 0.14 and r = 0.11, respectively). All of the weight change adjusted correlations were essentially unaffected by further adjustment for baseline fitness or activity and other covariates. CONCLUSIONS: Decreased fitness during young adulthood is associated with unfavorable changes in lipid profile, explained mostly by increased weight. Lack of association between change in activity and change in lipid profile observed in this study may be due, in part, to imprecision of activity measurement.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2004

Habitual physical activity and physical activity intensity: their relation to body composition in 5.0-10.5-y-old children.

BACKGROUND: Concerns of a decrease in physical activity levels (PALs) of children and a concurrent increase in childhood obesity exist worldwide. The exact relation between these two parameters however has as yet to be fully defined in children. OBJECTIVE: This study examined the relation in 47 children, aged 5-10.5 y (mean age 8.4+/-0.9 y) between habitual physical activity, minutes spent in moderate, vigorous and hard intensity activity and body composition parameters. DESIGN: Total energy expenditure (TEE) was calculated using the doubly labelled water technique and basal metabolic rate (BMR) was predicted from Schofield's equations. PAL was determined by PAL=TEE/BMR. Time spent in moderate, vigorous and hard intensity activity was determined by accelerometry, using the Tritrac-R3D. Body fatness and body mass index (BMI) were used as the two measures of body composition. RESULTS: Body fat and BMI were significantly inversely correlated with PAL (r=-0.43, P=0.002 and r=-0.45, P=0.001). Times spent in vigorous activity and hard activity were significantly correlated to percentage body fat (r=-0.44, P=0.004 and r=-0.39, P=0.014), but not BMI. Children who were in the top tertiles for both vigorous activity and hard activity had significantly lower body fat percentages than those in the middle and lowest tertiles. Moderate intensity activity was not correlated with measures of body composition. CONCLUSIONS: As well as showing a significant relation between PAL and body composition, these data intimate that there may be a threshold of intensity of physical activity that is influential on body fatness. In light of world trends showing increasing childhood obesity, this study supports the need to further investigate the importance of physical activity for children.

Adipose Tissue↗

PubMed2000

Body mass index, physical inactivity and low level of physical fitness as determinants of all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality--16 y follow-up of middle-aged and elderly men and women.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the independent associations and the possible interaction of body mass index (BMI), leisure time physical activity (LTPA) and perceived physical fitness and functional capability with the risk of mortality. DESIGN: Prospective 16y follow-up study. SUBJECTS: A regionally representative cohort of 35-63-y-old Finnish men (n= 1,090) and women (n= 1,122). MEASUREMENTS: All-cause, cardiovascular disease (CVD) and coronary heart disease (CHD) mortality were derived from the national census data until the end of September 1996 while the initial levels of BMI, LTPA, physical fitness and function were determined from self-administered questionnaires. RESULTS: After adjustment for age, marital and employment status, perceived health status, smoking and alcohol consumption, the Cox proportional hazards model showed that BMI was not associated with the risk of death among the men or the women. Compared with the most active subjects the men and women with no weekly vigorous activity had relative risks of 1.61 (95% confidence interval, CI, 0.98-2.64) and 4.68 (95% CI, 1.41-15.57), respectively, for CVD mortality, and for the men there was a relative risk of 1.66 (95% CI, 0.92-2.99) for CHD mortality. When compared with the men who perceived their fitness as better than their age-mates, the men with the 'worse' assessment had a relative risk of 3.29 (95% CI, 1.80-6.02) for all-cause mortality and 4.37 (95% CI, 1.80-10.6) for CVD mortality. Men with at least some difficulty in walking a distance of 2 km had a relative risk of 1.62 (95% CI, 1.05-2.50) for all-cause mortality when compared with those who had no functional difficulties. In addition, in the comparison with subjects with no functional difficulties, the men and women who had some difficulty climbing several flights of stairs had relative risks of 1.47 (95% CI, 0.97-2.23) and 2.39 (95% CI, 1.25-4.60) for all-cause mortality, respectively. For CVD mortality the relative risks were 1.85 (95% CI, 1.04-3.30) and 3.38 (1.22-9.41), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Although BMI did not prove to be an independent risk factor for mortality from CVD, CHD or from all causes combined, perceived physical fitness and functional capability did. An increase in LTPA seems to have a similar beneficial effect on the mortality risk of obese and nonobese men and women, and the effect also seems to be similar for fit and unfit subjects.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

Implicit anti-fat bias in physical educators: physical attributes, ideology and socialization.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the implicit and explicit prejudice of physical education (PE) students before, and following extensive professional training, and to examine the relationship of anti-fat prejudice to relevant psychosocial predictors. DESIGN: Implicit and explicit anti-fat prejudice of year one and three PE students (cross-sectional sample) were assessed and compared to a similarly matched (age, body mass index (BMI), education) sample of psychology students. SUBJECTS: Three hundred and forty-four university students, 180 PE students, 164 psychology students (67% female, mean age 20 years, BMI: mean 23.18 kg/m(2)). MEASUREMENTS: Measures of implicit and explicit anti-fat prejudice were administered to PE and psychology students in either their second week, or near completion of their third year, of university study. Physical identity, body esteem and social dominance orientation (SDO) were assessed in order to establish their relationship with anti-fat bias. RESULTS: PE students displayed higher levels of implicit anti-fat bias than psychology students, and other health professionals. Additionally, year three PE students displayed higher levels of implicit anti-fat attitudes than year one PE students. The higher implicit anti-fat biases exhibited by year three PE students were associated with SDO, and lower body esteem. CONCLUSION: Physical educators, and particularly those more socialized in the PE environment, display strong negative prejudice toward obese individuals that is greater than that displayed by other groups. These prejudices appear to be supported by an over-investment in physical attributes, and ideological beliefs.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

The relationship between physical fitness and physical activity during adolescence and cardiovascular disease risk factors at adult age. The Amsterdam Growth and Health Longitudinal Study.

The purpose of this study was to analyse the relationship between physical activity and physical fitness during adolescence (between 13 and 16 years of age) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors at adult age (32 years). The following CVD risk factors were considered: lipoprotein levels (total serum cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL), the TC:HDL ratio, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and indicators for body fatness and body fat distribution (sum of four skinfolds, waist to hip ratio, waist circumference). The data were derived from the Amsterdam Growth and Health Longitudinal Study, an observational longitudinal study in which eight repeated measurements were carried out over a period of 20 years. Physical fitness (measured by maximal oxygen uptake per kg bodyweight and by maximal slope reached on a treadmill test) during adolescence was related to a healthy CVD risk profile at the age of 32 years (i. e. inversely to the sum of four skinfolds, waist circumference and to total serum cholesterol). Physical activity during adolescence was not related to a healthy CVD risk profile at the age of 32 years.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

Descriptors of American Physical Therapy Association physical therapist members' reading of professional publications.

One of the components of evidence-based practice (EBP) is reading the literature. The purpose of this investigation was 1) to determine which publications are read most frequently by physical therapists (PTs), 2) to identify employment and education characteristics related to reading patterns, and 3) to determine how PTs use information gained from reading professional publications. A survey was constructed, pretested, revised, and then mailed to a random sample of 1,000 physical therapists, 500 from the general American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) membership and 500 from the combined Geriatric and Orthopedic section memberships. The data were analyzed with descriptive statistics. After all mailings, 43.3% of the sample responded. Of those responding, 66.3% were employed as clinicians, 14.7% as clinician-administrators, 6% as educators, and 4.9% as administrators. Overall, and for clinicians, the two most frequently read professional publications were non peer-reviewed. For clinician groups "patient management" was among the top two most selected uses of information from reading professional publications. Educators and those with an advanced doctorate indicated "class lectures" as either their second most frequently selected use or tied for first with "keeping current." Only educators and those with or pursuing an advanced doctorate reported using information from reading professional publications for "research ideas" or "research methods" among their top five uses. Slightly more than 10% of the respondents cited a peer-reviewed published article as having been most influential on their practice. Non peer-reviewed professional publications appear to serve as a more frequent source of information for "patient management" than do peer-reviewed publications. Efforts to increase the use of EBP need to be explored and evaluated for impact on physical therapists' practice.

Allied Health Personnel↗