Relationship between various physical activity domains and self-perceived health and obesity in women

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between self-perceived health and obesity and recreational, occupational, commuting, and total physical activity in women. The sample included 956 Estonian women aged 18-50. Cross-sectional data were collected in the Estonian Women Physical Activity Study via a mail-out survey in 2008 using the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire and self-reported measures of health indicators. The associations between physical activity and health indicators were examined using multiple logistic regression and were adjusted for potential confounding factors (age, education, and income). The women in the highest occupational physical activity group were significantly less likely to have good health (OR 0.51; CI 0.33-0.77) compared to women with no occupational physical activity. A significant association was observed, however, between being in the highest recreational physical activity group and having better self-perceived health (OR = 2.09, 95% CI 1.36-3.21) and not being obese (BMI ≥ 30) (OR = 0.42, 95% CI 0.21-0.86). A higher total amount of physical activity was not related to better health status or obesity. These findings suggest that the specific domains of physical activity may be more important for self-perceived health and obesity among women than the total amount of physical activity.