Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 2, 2026
Home-Based Prescribed Pulmonary Exercise in Patients with Stable Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Published on: August 24, 2019
The Relationship Between Weather and Objectively Measured Physical Activity Among Individuals With COPD
Shea M Balish1, Gail Dechman, Paul Hernandez
1University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada (Dr Balish); School of Physiotherapy (Dr Dechman) and Faculty of Medicine (Drs Hernandez and Blanchard), Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada; Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada (Dr Spence); Behavioural Medicine Laboratory, University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada (Dr Rhodes); School of Human Kinetics, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada (Dr McGannon); and Capital District Health Authority, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada (Dr Blanchard).
Purpose:
Although daily variation in weather impacts physical activity (PA) levels among relatively healthy individuals, it is largely unknown whether this relationship occurs for those living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The purpose of this study was to examine how daily variation in temperature, rain, and snow is related to objectively measured PA among patients with COPD, and whether demographic or clinical characteristics moderate these relationships.
Methods:
Patients with COPD completed a questionnaire and wore a pedometer for 7 days at baseline, end of pulmonary rehabilitation (PR), and 3 and 9 months after completing PR (28 days in total).
Results:
Hierarchal linear modeling showed that daily mean temperature and total daily rainfall, but not snowfall, independently predicted steps/day, controlling for demographic and clinical covariates in 189 patients in PR. Specifically, an increase of 10°C translates into 316 more steps (6.6% of mean steps/day) whereas a rainfall of 10 mm translates to 175 less steps (3.6% of mean steps/day). Furthermore, those with higher income had more steps/day on warmer days.
Conclusions:
These results add to converging evidence that weather plays an important role in determining PA among individuals with COPD.
Related Concept Videos
01:26COPD: Management Using Bronchodilators and Corticosteroids
01:27Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease-IV: Assessement and Diagnostic Studies
Medical History
01:29Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease-V: Management
Smoking Cessation
01:24Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Smoking is a primary risk factor for COPD, with over 80% of patients having a history of it. Patients typically experience progressive dyspnea or labored breathing, frequent coughing, and recurrent pulmonary infections. Many eventually succumb to respiratory failure, characterized by...
01:20Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease-I: Introduction
01:20COPD: Pathogenesis and Clinical Features
The primary cause for the onset of COPD is cigarette smoking and exposure to air pollution. These hazardous factors initiate a chain reaction within the lungs, resulting in chronic inflammation, damage to the airways, and a...