Weight Status and Sedentary Behavior of Alzheimer's Disease Caregivers

Objectives: In this study, we sought to characterize the weight status, sedentary behavior, and physical activity of caregivers of individuals with Alzheimer's disease. Methods: In 2014, we surveyed caregivers of individuals with Alzheimer's disease from the South Carolina Alzheimer's Disease Registry (N = 47) about their personal health behaviors. Additionally, a subset of individuals (N = 14) wore an accelerometer for 7 days. Results: Caregivers (N = 47) were mostly overweight or obese (85%) and self-reported a daily average sedentary time of 246.5 ± 203.0 minutes and 455.8 ± 291.4 minutes, as measured by 2 questionnaires. Objective measures indicated that persons spent an average of 769.4 ± 167.6 minutes per day (77.8% of their waking day) engaged in sedentary behavior. Conclusion: Given the negative health outcomes associated with both obesity and sedentary behavior, this is a vulnerable population that likely would benefit from interventions focused on weight management and reducing sedentary behavior.