Beatriz Angélica Valdivia Arancibia

Anthropometric indicators of obesity in policemen: A systematic review of observational studies

The aim of this paper was to summarize scientific literature on obesity in policemen through a systematic review of observational studies. For this purpose the following electronic databases were selected: Medline by Pubmed, CINAHL, and Scopus; and a manual search of the referenced studies concerning this topic was performed. There were no restrictions with respect to the year or language of the publication. Twenty-three studies were identified and 9 articles, considered as potentially relevant, were included. The labor time, shift and career progression promoted changes in body composition. Most of the policemen taking part in the studies included in this paper were overweight (BMI: 25.2–29.3), obese (body fat ≥ 25%), had increased waist (90.4–102 cm) and abdominal perimeters (18.9–90.5 cm), and had a higher risk of chronic disease, which is associated with depression and stress development. Interventional studies are needed for the purpose of proposing preventive and rehabilitation programs, which would result in providing physical and mental well-being, improvement of life quality and, especially, prevention of obesity related to police work.

Health-related quality of life and related factors of military police officers

PurposeThe present study aimed to determine the effect of demographic characteristics, occupation, anthropometric indices, and leisure-time physical activity levels on coronary risk and health-related quality of life among military police officers from the State of Santa Catarina, Brazil.MethodsThe sample included 165 military police officers who fulfilled the study’s inclusion criteria. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire and the Short Form Health Survey were used, in addition to a spreadsheet of socio-demographic, occupational and anthropometric data. Statistical analyses were performed using descriptive analysis followed by Spearman Correlation and multiple linear regression analysis using the backward method.ResultsThe waist-to-height ratio was identified as a risk factor low health-related quality of life. In addition, the conicity index, fat percentage, years of service in the military police, minutes of work per day and leisure-time physical activity levels were identified as risk factors for coronary disease among police officers.ConclusionsThese findings suggest that the Military Police Department should adopt an institutional policy that allows police officers to practice regular physical activity in order to maintain and improve their physical fitness, health, job performance, and quality of life.ResumoObjetivoO presente estudo teve como objetivo determinar o efeito das características demográficas, ocupacionais, antropométricas e dos níveis de atividade física no lazer sobre o risco coronariano e qualidade de vida relacionada à saúde de policiais militares do Estado de Santa Catarina, Brasil.MétodosA amostra foi composta por 165 policiais militares que preencheram os critérios de inclusão do estudo. Foram aplicados os questionários International Physical Activity Questionnaire, Form Health Survey-36 e Inventário de Risco Coronariano, além de uma planilha de dados sócio-demográficos, ocupacionais e antropométricos. As análises estatísticas consistiram em análise descritiva seguida de correlação de Spearman e análise de regressão linear múltipla utilizando o método backward.ResultadosA relação cintura estatura foi identificada como fator de risco para uma baixa qualidade de vida relacionada à saúde. Além disso, o índice de conicidade, percentual de gordura, tempo de serviço na Polícia Militar, minutos de trabalhos por dia e níveis de atividade física no lazer foram identificados como fatores de risco para doença coronariana entre os policiais.ConclusõesEstes resultados sugerem que os Departamentos de Polícia Militar devem adotar uma política institucional que viabilize a prática da atividade física regular, com o objetivo de manter e aperfeiçoar as aptidões físicas, com vistas à melhoria de sua saúde e, por conseguinte para o seu aprimoramento técnico profissional e sua qualidade de vida.

Efeitos da caminhada nórdica na doença de Parkinson: uma revisão sistemática de ensaios clínicos randomizados

Several exercise modalities improve the symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Among the variety of physical exercises, Nordic walking has been used. The aim of this study was to summarize scientific literature on effects of Nordic walking on patients with PD by a systematic review of randomized clinical trials. The following electronic databases were selected: MEDLINE by Pubmed, Cochrane, PEDro, SCOPUS and Web of Science and articles identified by manual search, without restriction of date and language. The reviewers evaluated the articles and selected studies according to the eligibility criteria. The following data were extracted from the selected studies: publication identification, participants’ characteristics (sex, age, disease stage, duration of disease), experimental intervention characteristics, control group characteristics, duration, follow-up time, outcome measures and main results. Nordic walking programs with moderate and high intensities, with a minimum of 12 sessions of 60 minutes in a period from 6 to 24 weeks promoted positive effects on the severity, gait, balance, quality of life, functional capacity and motor function in patients with PD.

Qualidade de vida de idosos com deficiência e prática de atividade física em instituições de longa permanência

Objective: To analyze the relationship between quality of life and level of physical activity in elderly with disabilities in long-term institutions. Methods: Exploratory study conducted with 55 elderly, through questionnaires from the World Health Organization about quality of life (WHOQOL-Bref), for elderly (WHOQOL-Old), and on physical activity (IPAQ-Long), besides medical charts. Results: Most elderly were characterized as female, aged 80 to 89 years, showed visual impairment, higher scores for general quality of life in the psychological and social domains and lower scores on the physical and environmental domains; higher scores of quality of life related to aging in the intimacy and activity of life (past, present and future) domains and lower scores death and dying and sensory skills domains; low levels of physical activity and were considered sedentary. We also found significant association between the overall score for quality of life with sedentary behavior and various domains of quality of life related to aging. Conclusion: Older respondents with less time sitting down, higher scores in the areas of autonomy and intimacy, and lower scores in the field fear death and dying are associated with higher scores for quality of life.

Efeitos da natação e caminhada nos aspectos relacionados à saúde de policiais

The present study aimed to compare the effects of swimming and walking after 24 weeks of training on anthropometric indicators of obesity, physical activity, coronary risk and health-related quality of life among military police officers of the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil. The sample included 51 military police officers (male) whose ages ranged from 22 to 49 years, with a mean age of 35.53 ± 7.63 years, and who fulfilled the inclusion criteria of the study, which was conducted between the months of June and December 2012. The subjects were interviewed to collect demographic and occupational data as well as anthropometry, physical activity level and health. The volunteers were divided into the following three groups according to their preference: swimming experimental group (n = 24), walking experimental group (n = 24), and control group (n = 24). Statistical analyses were performed using descriptive analysis, oneway and two-way ANOVAs followed by Bonferroni’s post hoc test, Student’s t-test, the Kruskal-Wallis test and the Mann-Whitney U test followed by Bonferroni’s correction, the Wilcoxon test and Cohen’s d test. After 24 weeks of training, the waist circumference, conicity index, waist-to-height ratio, physical activity at work, vigorous activities and coronary risk were significantly different in the swimming group, and the percentages of fat, lean mass and fat mass were significantly different in the walking group. The swimming exercise program contributed to significant reductions in waist circumference, conicity index, the waist-to-height ratio and coronary risk and to increased levels of physical activity at work and vigorous activities. In addition, the walking exercise program contributed to significant reductions in relative body fat and fat mass and increased lean mass among military police officers.