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Lookup NU author(s): Professor Rachel CooperORCiD
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
Copyright © 2016 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health on behalf of the American College of Sports Medicine. Purpose This study aimed to examine the associations of birth weight with ability in school sports in adolescence and participation in leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) across adulthood and to investigate whether associations between birth weight and LTPA change with age. Methods Study participants were British singletons born in 1946 and followed up to age 68 yr (the Medical Research Council National Survey of Health and Development). Birth weights were extracted from birth records. Teacher reports of ability in school sports were collected at age 13 yr. LTPA was self-reported at ages 36, 43, 53, 60-64, and 68 yr and categorized at each age as participating in sports, exercise, and other vigorous LTPA at least once per month versus no participation. Associations were examined using standard and mixed-effects logistic regression models. Results Relevant data were available for 2739 study participants (50.1% female). When compared with the low birth weight group (≤2.50 kg), those with heavier birth weights were more likely to be rated as above average or average at school sports (vs below average); fully adjusted odds ratio = 1.78 (95% confidence interval = 1.14-2.77). Across adulthood, those with heavier birth weights were more likely to participate in LTPA than those with low birth weight; fully adjusted odds ratio of LTPA across adulthood = 1.52 (95% confidence interval = 1.09-2.14). This association did not vary by age (P = 0.5 for birth weight by age interaction). Conclusions Low birth weight was associated with lower ability in school sports and with nonparticipation in LTPA across adulthood. Identifying the underlying developmental and social processes operating across life for low birth weight infants may inform the design of appropriate interventions to support participation in LTPA across life.
Author(s): Elhakeem A, Cooper R, Bann D, Kuh D, Hardy R
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise
Year: 2017
Volume: 49
Issue: 1
Pages: 64-70
Print publication date: 01/01/2017
Online publication date: 01/01/2017
Acceptance date: 01/07/2016
Date deposited: 24/01/2022
ISSN (print): 0195-9131
ISSN (electronic): 1530-0315
Publisher: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins
URL: https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0000000000001077
DOI: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000001077
PubMed id: 27580148
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