Relationship between habitual physical activity and serum lipoprotein levels in white male adolescents

It is currently thought that increased physical activity can have a positive influence on high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels in adults. However, only a limited amount of research has been directed at studying the influence of physical activity on HDL-C in adolescents. This study correlated the reported levels of physical activity, exercise capacity, physical measurements, and 48-hr dietary intake of 50 white male adolescents with their levels of HDL-C, ratio of total serum cholesterol (T.Chol) to HDL-C, and ratio of low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C) to HDL-C. Using multiple regression, age (r = -0.42) was the strongest predictor of HDL-C, followed in order by TV watched/night (r = -0.42) and height (r = -0.31) (R2 = 0.28). Age (r = 0.38) was the strongest predictor of the T.Chol/HDL-C ratio, followed by days jogged/week (r = -0.32), TV watched/night (r = 0.29), and systolic blood pressure (r = 0.30) (R2 = 0.30). The days jogged per week (r = -0.32) was the best predictor of the LDL-C/HDL-C ratio, followed in order by hours spent reading/day (r = 0.27) and systolic blood pressure (r = 0.23) (R2 = 0.23). Maximum exercise capacity was not related to these lipoprotein components. These findings suggest that the level of habitual physical activity in white male adolescents may be associated with the level of HDL-C in relation to T.Chol and LDL-C.