Abstract:
Objective The study was conducted to analyze the patterns and influencing factors of adult physical activities in Zhejiang province.Methods With the data from the provincial nutrition and health survey in Zhejiang,2002,the conditions of the physical activities of 3226 adults from 16 counties/districts selected by multistage clustered randomized sampling were evaluated using a MET(metabolic equivalents)-based approach,and analyzed using the one way ANOVA test.Results The low-and moderate-to-high-intensity physical activities accounted for 52.13% and 47.87%,respectively,of the total amount of the physical activities an adult resident would weekly engage in.These activities originated in turn from occupational labor,housework,recreation and transportation,which respectively contributed to 56.41%,20.07%,13.57% and 9.95% of the total amount.The amount of total physical activities and that of moderate-to-high-intensity activities both demonstrated significant difference(P0.05) between urban and rural residents,younger and elder groups,male and female subjects,as well as among people with different education levels,occupations,marriage status and family income.Conclusion The majority of adult physical activities in Zhejiang province had been occupied by low-intensity ones,whereas occupational labor still maintained the primary source of moderate-to-high-intensity physical activities.Focal intervention should be provided for adults with such characteristics as urban livers,35 years of age or under,female,unmarried,well educated or sustaining high family income.