Document Type
Article
Publication Date
9-2013
Publication Title
Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses
Abstract
Background: Findings from studies examining the association between obesity and acute respiratory infection are inconsistent. Few studies have assessed the relationship between obesity-related behavioral factors, such as diet and exercise, and risk of acute respiratory infection.
Objective: To determine whether community prevalence of obesity, low fruit/vegetable consumption, and physical inactivity are associated with influenza-related hospitalization rates.
Methods: Using data from 274 US counties, from 2002 to 2008, we regressed county influenza-related hospitalization rates on county prevalence of obesity (BMI ≥ 30), low fruit/vegetable consumption (/day), and physical inactivity (/month recreational exercise), while adjusting for community-level confounders such as insurance coverage and the number of primary care physicians per 100 000 population.
Results: A 5% increase in obesity prevalence was associated with a 12% increase in influenza-related hospitalization rates [adjusted rate ratio (ARR) 1·12, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1·07, 1·17]. Similarly, a 5% increase in the prevalence of low fruit/vegetable consumption and physical inactivity was associated with an increase of 12% (ARR 1·12, 95% CI 1·08, 1·17) and 11% (ARR 1·11, 95% CI 1·07, 1·16), respectively. When all three variables were included in the same model, a 5% increase in prevalence of obesity, low fruit/vegetable consumption, and physical inactivity was associated with 6%, 8%, and 7% increases in influenza-related hospitalization rates, respectively.
Conclusions: Communities with a greater prevalence of obesity were more likely to have high influenza-related hospitalization rates. Similarly, less physically active populations, with lower fruit/vegetable consumption, tended to have higher influenza-related hospitalization rates, even after accounting for obesity.
Recommended Citation
Charland, Katia M.; Buckeridge, David L.; Hoen, Anne G.; Berry, Jay G.; Elixhauser, Anne; Melton, Forrest; and Brownstein, John S., "Relationship between community prevalence of obesity and associated behavioral factors and community rates of influenza-related hospitalizations in the United States" (2013). School of Natural Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations. 49.
https://digitalcommons.csumb.edu/sns_fac/49
Comments
Published in Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Available via doi: 10.1111/irv.12019.
This is an open-access article made available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. Permission is therefore not required for academic or commercial reuse, provided that full attribution is included in the new work.