Joint Association of Screen Time and Physical Activity with Obesity: Findings from the Korea Media Panel Study

There is evidence to suggest that sedentary behavior is associated with a higher risk of metabolic disease. The aim of this study was to investigate cross-sectional joint associations of physical activity (PA) and screen time (ST), with the risk of obesity in Korean adults.

The Korea Media Panel Study consisted of a household interview and a self-administered diary survey on media usage over 3 days. ST (hours/day) was defined as the reported daily average hours spent watching television, computing (i.e., desktop, notebook, netbook, tablets), smartphone and video game console use. Cross-sectional associations of obesity (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m²) and the amount of daily ST and PA were examined by logistic regression models adjusting for other possible confounders including alcohol consumption, smoking, depressive symptoms and demographic information. There were 7,808 participants included in the analyses.

Increased ST was significantly associated with the risk of obesity (controlling for other possible confounders), but PA level was not found to be significantly linked. Participants who engaged in screen time > 6 hours per day had a higher incidence of obesity.

This study provides evidence of the association between ST and the increased incidence of obesity measured by BMI, independent of PA amongst Korean adults.