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Moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity trajectories during adolescence and young adulthood predict adiposity in young adulthood: The Iowa Bone Development Study

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Abstract

This study examined the associations of moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) trajectories in adolescence through young adulthood with adiposity in young adults. Participants from The Iowa Bone Development Study cohort were longitudinally assessed (N = 297; 57% female). Accelerometry-measured MVPA (min/day) at ages 15 through 23 years, and fat mass and visceral adipose tissue mass indices (kg/m2, g/m2) derived from dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scans at age 23 years were analyzed. Latent trajectory analyses classified MVPA into two patterns. Multivariable linear regression analyses showed that being in the high MVPA trajectory group was associated with lower fat mass index z-scores. Individuals who were consistently active with high MVPA (vs. moderately active with decreasing MVPA) during adolescence up until early young adulthood had less accumulation of total body adiposity in young adulthood. This study suggests that adopting a consistently active lifestyle throughout adolescence can result in healthier body composition in young adulthood.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the study participants and staff of The Iowa Bone Development Study. We thank the study participants and staff of The Iowa Bone Development Study. This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health (R01-DE12101, R01-DE09551, M01-RR00059, UL1-RR024979, UL1-TR000442, and U54-TR001013), and research funds by the Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust and Delta Dental of Iowa Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health and Human Physiology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA

    Minsuk Oh, Kara M. Whitaker & Kathleen F. Janz

  2. Research and Evaluation Division, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA

    Dong Zhang

  3. Department of Epidemiology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA

    Kara M. Whitaker, Elena M. Letuchy, Kathleen F. Janz & Steven M. Levy

  4. Department of Preventive and Community Dentistry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA

    Steven M. Levy

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  1. Minsuk Oh
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  4. Elena M. Letuchy
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Correspondence to Kara M. Whitaker.

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Minsuk Oh, Dong Zhang, Kara M. Whitaker, Elena M. Letuchy, Kathleen F. Janz, and Steven M. Levy declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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All procedures followed were in accordance with ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation (institutional and national) and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2000. Informed consent was obtained from all patients for being included in the study.

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Oh, M., Zhang, D., Whitaker, K.M. et al. Moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity trajectories during adolescence and young adulthood predict adiposity in young adulthood: The Iowa Bone Development Study. J Behav Med 44, 231–240 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10865-020-00190-x

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