Chang-Tsen Hung

A previous study provided reference data on the age and gender distribution of anthropometric parameters in Taiwanese adults. However, there are very few large-scale analyses of anthropometric data of older adults in Taiwan. Therefore, the main purpose of this study was to describe gender- and age-specific distributions of anthropometric measurements and anthropometry assessments of Taiwanese older adults. This was a cross-sectional study conducted on 22,389 adults aged 65 years or older (8017 males and 14,372 females) who participated in Taiwan’s National Physical Fitness Survey 2014–2015. All participants were recruited using stratified convenience sampling from 46 physical fitness test stations in 22 cities or counties in Taiwan. The anthropometric measurements and anthropometry assessments included in the present study were the assessments of height, weight, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), hip circumference (HC), and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR). The results showed statistically significant differences in weight, height, WC, and WHR across all age groups among both male and female individuals aged 65 years and older in Taiwan. However, there was no significant difference in BMI and HC between males and females in all age groups. Anthropometric status provides an initial assessment of the overall health of the population. This study uses a representative population of Taiwanese older adults over the age of 65 for analysis and provides detailed information on anthropometric data distribution.

Background and Objectives: Health-related physical fitness reduces the risk of chronic disease, promotes quality of life, and has enormous economic benefits considering the global health care costs resulting from obesity. However, relatively limited information is available regarding the dose–response relationship between scientific physical fitness and obesity risk. This study aimed to determine the associations of scientific physical fitness with body mass index (BMI) distribution and overweight/obesity risk among adults aged 23–64 years in Taiwan. Materials and Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study and reviewed data derived from the Scientific Physical Fitness Testing Program, Sports Administration, Ministry of Education, Taiwan. Responses from 16,939 participants from the database (7761 men and 9178 women, aged 23–64 years) were collected in this study. Each participant completed a series of scientific physical fitness measurements, including cardiorespiratory fitness (3 min progressive knee-up and step [3MPKS] test), muscular fitness (hand grip strength), and flexibility (sit-and-reach test). Anthropometric measurements included body height, weight, and BMI. The quartiles of scientific physical fitness results were identified as the dependent variable in the multiple linear and multiple logistic regression analysis to determine the associations of the scientific physical fitness measurements with BMI distribution and overweight/obesity risk, as well as the dose–response relationship. Results: The 3MPKS test was significantly associated with BMI (quartile 1 (Q1): β = 1.900; quartile 2 (Q2): β = 1.594; quartile 3 (Q3): β = 1.079 for men, and Q1: β = 1.454; Q2: β = 0.882; Q3: β = 0.555 for women), overweight (Q1: odds ratio (OR) = 2.117; Q2: OR = 2.056; Q3: OR = 2.063 for men, and Q1: OR = 3.036; Q2: OR = 2.542; Q3: OR = 1.959 for women), and obesity (Q1: OR = 6.530; Q2: OR = 5.747; Q3: OR = 3.557 for men, and Q1: OR = 3.238; Q2: OR = 1.431 for women) risk compared with quartile 4 (Q4) as the reference group with a dose–response relationship. In addition, relative hand grip strength was significantly associated with BMI (Q2: β = −0.922; Q3: β = −1.865; Q4: β = −3.108 for men, and Q2: β = −1.309; Q3: β = −2.161; Q4: β = −2.759 for women), overweight (Q2: OR = 0.806; Q3: OR = 0.697; Q4: OR = 0.278 for men, and Q2: OR = 0.667; Q3: OR = 0.398; Q4: OR = 0.228 for women), and obesity (Q1: OR = 0.528; Q2: OR = 0.206; Q3: OR = 0.049 for men, and Q1: OR = 0.351; Q2: OR = 0.129; Q3: OR = 0.051 for women) risk compared with Q1 as the reference group with a dose–response relationship. Conclusions: Higher levels of performance of the 3MPKS and relative grip strength tests were associated with lower BMI and overweight/obesity risk in both sexes. However, the sit-and-reach test was only partially related to BMI and overweight/obesity risk in both sexes. Cardiorespiratory fitness and muscular fitness were effective predictors of BMI distribution and overweight/obesity risk in Taiwanese adults.

Research on relationships between physical fitness and sleep duration among older adults is scarce, especially in Taiwanese representative samples of elderly people who undergo physical fitness measurements. This study aimed to determine the associations between physical fitness and short and long sleep durations among older adults in Taiwan. We conducted a cross-sectional study and reviewed data derived from the National Physical Fitness Survey in Taiwan. A total of 24,125 Taiwanese adults aged 65 years and older participated in this study between October 2014 and March 2015. Each individual’s sleep duration was recorded with a standard questionnaire method. Sleep duration data were stratified into short (≤5 h), normal (6–7 h), and long (≥8 h) sleep duration groups. Physical fitness was assessed by five components: aerobic endurance (2 min step test), muscle strength and endurance (30 s arm curl and 30 s chair stand tests), flexibility (back scratch and chair sit-and-reach tests), body composition (body mass index (BMI) and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR)), and balance (one-leg stance with eye open and 8-foot up-and-go tests). To understand whether a dose–response relationship exists between physical fitness and short or long sleep duration, we analyzed four levels of performance on the basis of quartiles of physical fitness measurements by using logistic regression. The first quartile of physical fitness performance was the baseline level. The odds ratio (OR) for short sleep duration for the third quartile of BMI was 0.8031 times (95% CI, 0.7119–0.9061) lower than the baseline. For the fourth quartile of BMI, the OR was 0.8660 times (95% CI, 0.7653–0.9800) lower than the baseline. The adjusted OR for long sleep duration significantly decreased in the second, third, and fourth quartiles of the 30 s chair stand, back scratch, chair sit-and-reach test, one-leg stance with one eye open, and BMI. The adjusted OR was increased in the third and fourth quartiles of the 8-foot up-and-go and WHR. The results of the current study suggest that physical fitness performance may influence sleep duration as an associated factor, and the relationship is much stronger for long sleep duration than for short sleep duration.