Habitual physical activity in a population residing in the city of Barcelona

OBJECTIVES: To describe the sociodemographic distribution of habitual physical activity and to analyse its relationship with self-perceived health status and occupational status, among the population older that 16 years of age in the city of Barcelona, Spain. METHODS: A sample of 1,885 adult men and 2,196 women answered the Health Interview Survey of Barcelona in 1992. Those whose habitual activity required high physical exertion or walking were considered as active. Bivariate and multivariate analyses adjusting logistic regression models were used to study the relationship between habitual physical activity and the rest of variables, for each occupational situation. RESULTS: Fifty six percent of adults reported being physically active. Physical activity was lower among workers than non workers, although workers reported more physical exertion (14.5% in men and 8.0% in women). Physical activity was associated with occupation and educational level among male workers, but only with occupation among female workers. In the non working population, physical activity was lower among those who perceived their health status as fair or poor, compared with those that described it as good or very good, (ORa in men was 0.2, 95% confidence interval = 0.1-0.5; ORa in women was 0.5, 95% confidence interval = 0.3-0.8). CONCLUSIONS: More than half of the Barcelona population were physically active in an habitual manner. Among workers, this activity was mainly determined by the occupation. Non-workers with a poor self-perceived health status did less physical activity.