Emotion and Adaptation

BACKGROUND\nIncreased physical activity is related to reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, possibly because it leads to improvement in the lipoprotein profile. However, the amount of exercise training required for optimal benefit is unknown. In a prospective, randomized study, we investigated the effects of the amount and intensity of exercise on lipoproteins.\n\n\nMETHODS\nA total of 111 sedentary, overweight men and women with mild-to-moderate dyslipidemia were randomly assigned to participate for six months in a control group or for approximately eight months in one of three exercise groups: high-amount-high-intensity exercise, the caloric equivalent of jogging 20 mi (32.0 km) per week at 65 to 80 percent of peak oxygen consumption; low-amount-high-intensity exercise, the equivalent of jogging 12 mi (19.2 km) per week at 65 to 80 percent of peak oxygen consumption; or low-amount-moderate-intensity exercise, the equivalent of walking 12 mi per week at 40 to 55 percent of peak oxygen consumption. Subjects were encouraged to maintain their base-line body weight. The 84 subjects who complied with these guidelines served as the basis for the main analysis. Detailed lipoprotein profiling was performed by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy with verification by measurement of cholesterol in lipoprotein subfractions.\n\n\nRESULTS\nThere was a beneficial effect of exercise on a variety of lipid and lipoprotein variables, seen most clearly with the high amount of high-intensity exercise. The high amount of exercise resulted in greater improvements than did the lower amounts of exercise (in 10 of 11 lipoprotein variables) and was always superior to the control condition (11 of 11 variables). Both lower-amount exercise groups always had better responses than the control group (22 of 22 comparisons).\n\n\nCONCLUSIONS\nThe highest amount of weekly exercise, with minimal weight change, had widespread beneficial effects on the lipoprotein profile. The improvements were related to the amount of activity and not to the intensity of exercise or improvement in fitness.

Effects of the amount and intensity of exercise on plasma lipoproteins: Editor's comments

Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) refers to the capacity of the circulatory and respiratory systems to supply oxygen to skeletal muscle mitochondria for energy production needed during physical activity. CRF is an important marker of physical and mental health and academic achievement in youth. However, only 40% of US youth are currently believed to have healthy CRF. In this statement, we review the physiological principles that determine CRF, the tools that are available to assess CRF, the modifiable and nonmodifiable factors influencing CRF, the association of CRF with markers of health in otherwise healthy youth, and the temporal trends in CRF both in the United States and internationally. Development of a cost-effective CRF measurement process that could readily be incorporated into office visits and in field settings to screen all youth periodically could help identify those at increased risk.

Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Youth: An Important Marker of Health: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association.

To estimate international and national temporal trends in the cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) of adults, and to examine relationships between trends in CRF and trends in health-related, socioeconomic, and environmental indicators. Data were obtained from a systematic search of studies that explicitly reported temporal trends in the CRF of apparently healthy adults aged 18–59 years. Sample-weighted temporal trends were estimated using best-fitting regression models relating the year of testing to mean CRF. Post-stratified population-weighted mean changes in percent and standardized CRF were estimated. Pearson’s correlations were used to describe associations between linear trends in CRF and linear trends in health-related, socioeconomic, and environmental indicators. 2,525,827 adults representing eight high- and upper-middle-income countries between 1967 and 2016 collectively showed a moderate decline of 7.7% (95% CI − 8.4 to − 7.0) or 1.6% per decade (95% CI − 1.7 to − 1.5). Internationally, CRF improved in the 1960s and 1970s, and progressively declined at an increasing rate thereafter. Declines were larger for men than for women, and for young adults (< 40 years) than for middle-aged adults (≥ 40 years). All countries experienced declines in CRF with a very strong negative correlation between CRF trends and obesity trends. There has been a meaningful decline in the CRF of adults since 1980, which has progressively increased in magnitude over time, suggestive of a corresponding decline in population health. Continuous national and international surveillance systems are needed in order to monitor health and fitness trends, especially among low- and middle-income countries for which data do not currently exist. PROSPERO registration number: CRD42013003678.

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Temporal Trends in the Cardiorespiratory Fitness of 2,525,827 Adults Between 1967 and 2016: A Systematic Review

Prediction of Maximal Oxygen Uptake by Six-Minute Walk Test and Body Mass Index in Healthy Boys.

Editor for creating and applying computerise surveys

Objectives 
The main purpose of the present meta-analysis was to examine the criterion-related validity of the distance- and time-based walk/run tests for estimating cardiorespiratory fitness among apparently healthy children and adults.


Materials and Methods 
Relevant studies were searched from seven electronic bibliographic databases up to August 2015 and through other sources. The Hunter-Schmidt’s psychometric meta-analysis approach was conducted to estimate the population criterion-related validity of the following walk/run tests: 5,000 m, 3 miles, 2 miles, 3,000 m, 1.5 miles, 1 mile, 1,000 m, ½ mile, 600 m, 600 yd, ¼ mile, 15 min, 12 min, 9 min, and 6 min.


Results 
From the 123 included studies, a total of 200 correlation values were analyzed. The overall results showed that the criterion-related validity of the walk/run tests for estimating maximum oxygen uptake ranged from low to moderate (rp = 0.42–0.79), with the 1.5 mile (rp = 0.79, 0.73–0.85) and 12 min walk/run tests (rp = 0.78, 0.72–0.83) having the higher criterion-related validity for distance- and time-based field tests, respectively. The present meta-analysis also showed that sex, age and maximum oxygen uptake level do not seem to affect the criterion-related validity of the walk/run tests.


Conclusions 
When the evaluation of an individual’s maximum oxygen uptake attained during a laboratory test is not feasible, the 1.5 mile and 12 min walk/run tests represent useful alternatives for estimating cardiorespiratory fitness. As in the assessment with any physical fitness field test, evaluators must be aware that the performance score of the walk/run field tests is simply an estimation and not a direct measure of cardiorespiratory fitness.

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Criterion-Related Validity of the Distance- and Time-Based Walk/Run Field Tests for Estimating Cardiorespiratory Fitness: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Psychometric properties in the self-efficacy scale on behavior of physical health care were studied. The sample was of 2089 individuals: 902 women and 1187 men, incoming students to the majors offered at the Autonomous University of Chihuahua in Mexico, with an average age of 18.23 years. The analysis of psychometric properties has shown that a trifactorial structure is feasible and adequate according to the psychometric requirements established when the informants are the students. The three factors structure, attending statistic and substantial criteria has shown adequate adjustment factors, reliability (except on physical health and hydration factors) and validity indicators. Besides, factorial analyses taken with sub-samples 1 and 2 fully demonstrate these results.

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Análisis Psicométrico de la Escala Autoeficacia en Conductas de Cuidado de la Salud Física en Universitarios de Primer Ingreso

A study has been done to characterize female students who choose one of the degrees offered by the Universidad Autonoma de Chihuahua in Mexico, in terms of the perceived self-efficacy in their academic performance. The sample consisted of 902 female freshmen college students from seven disciplines with a mean age of 18.1 years. The research method adopted has a quantitative focus with a descriptive design employing a survey. The results show that the profiles of selfefficacy in academic behavior is very similar between students of different disciplines, and that the behavior related to communication skills represents an area of opportunity for improvement in incoming college students. Also, it was observed that the profiles of current, desired and achievable efficacy are related: the higher the perceived self-efficacy, greater desire and more chances of being effective. This allows concluding that if any of them can be improved, the other two will also do it.

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Autoeficacia Percibida en la conducta Académica de Estudiantes Universitarias

espanolEl objetivo de esta investigacion consistio en comparar los perfiles de burnout percibido de mujeres y hombres universitarios en la Universidad Autonoma de Chihuahua, Mexico. La muestra total fue de 1180 participantes; 598 mujeres y 582 hombres, con una edad media de 20.50 anos y 20.84 anos, respectivamente. El abordaje adoptado en la investigacion se enmarco dentro de un enfoque cuantitativo con un diseno descriptivo tipo encuesta. Todos los participantes contestaron el Inventario de Burnout para Estudiantes de Maslach. Los resultados del analisis multivariante de varianza, seguido por los analisis de varianza univariados, muestran que las mujeres en comparacion con los hombres reportan mayores niveles de burnout academico en las tres dimensiones estudiadas (Agotamiento, Cinismo y Eficacia). Las diferencias encontradas entre hombres y mujeres con respecto a su percepcion de burnout academico, sugieren que al disenar cualquier tipo de intervencion que tenga como objetivo la disminucion del burnout percibido habra que tomar en cuenta a la variable genero. EnglishThe aim of the present study was to compare the profiles of academic burnout between men and women students of the University Autonoma de Chihuahua, Mexico. A total sample of 1180 participants, 598 women and 582 men, with an average age of 20.50 years and 20.84 years, respectively. A quantitative approach with a descriptive and transversal survey design was used. All the participants completed the Maslach Burnout Inventory Student Survey. The results of the one-way multivariate analysis of variance, followed by the oneway univariate analysis of variance, showed that compared with men, women report higher levels of academic burnout in the three dimensions studied (Exhaustion, Cynicism and Efficacy). The differences found between men and women with respect to their perception of academic burnout, suggest that when designing any type of intervention that has as objective the reduction of perceived burnout, the gender variable should be taken into account.

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Martha Ornelas

Papers

Editor for creating and applying computerise surveys

Criterion-Related Validity of the Distance- and Time-Based Walk/Run Field Tests for Estimating Cardiorespiratory Fitness: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Análisis Psicométrico de la Escala Autoeficacia en Conductas de Cuidado de la Salud Física en Universitarios de Primer Ingreso

Autoeficacia Percibida en la conducta Académica de Estudiantes Universitarias

El Burnout Académico Percibido en Universitarios; Comparaciones por Género