Adults who adhere to physical activity guidelines are more likely to increase their high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels and have a reduction in cardiovascular disease risk, according to a new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study.
From 2011 to 2014, the age-adjusted prevalence of low HDL cholesterol was 17.7 percent in adults who met physical activity guidelines and 21 percent in adults who did not meet physical activity guidelines. The overall prevalence of low HDL cholesterol was 19.0 percent.
For men, the age-adjusted prevalence of low HDL cholesterol was 25 percent for those who met physical activity guidelines and 35.4 percent for those who did not meet physical activity guidelines. For women, the prevalence was 9.1 percent and 11.8 percent, respectively.
The CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics released the findings in a data brief on March 3.
For their analyses, the authors used data from the 2011-2012 and 2013-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, a cross-sectional survey for civilian, noninstutionalized U.S. adults.
The authors defined low HDL cholesterol as less than 40 mg/dL based on laboratory measurement. They also noted that physical activity guidelines recommend adults engage in 150 minutes or more of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week, 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity per week or an equivalent combination.
As the adults’ age increased, the prevalence of low HDL cholesterol decreased for those who met and did not meet the physical activity guidelines.
Among adults age 60 or older, the prevalence of low HDL cholesterol was 12.6 percent for those who met the physical activity guidelines and 18.1 percent for those who did not meet the guidelines. The differences in the prevalence of low HDL cholesterol based on physical activity were not statistically significant in the 20-39 and 40-59 age categories.
Among non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic black adults, the prevalence of low HDL cholesterol was higher among those who did not meet the physical activity guidelines. However, there were no significant differences in low HDL cholesterol by physical activity status among non-Hispanic Asian and Hispanic adults.
The authors also noted that low HDL prevalence declined with increasing education level regardless of whether the adults met the physical activity guidelines.
Executive Editor
Tim Casey joined TriMed Media Group in 2015 as Executive Editor. For the previous four years, he worked as an editor and writer for HMP Communications, primarily focused on covering managed care issues and reporting from medical and health care conferences. He was also a staff reporter at the Sacramento Bee for more than four years covering professional, college and high school sports. He earned his undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Notre Dame and his MBA degree from Georgetown University.