An active lifestyle significantly reduces the risk of 19 chronic diseases, research shows

Researchers from the University of Iowa are recommending that all patients be asked about their physical activity levels, after a new study highlights the link between physical activity and chronic diseases.

The study, led by Lucas Carr, associate professor in the Department of Health and Human Physiology, examined responses from more than 7,000 patients at the University of Iowa Health Care Medical Center, who recorded their physical activity levels in a questionnaire.

The study, “Screening patients for physical inactivity helps identify patients at risk for cardiometabolic and chronic diseases,” was published online in Preventing chronic diseases.

Patients’ responses to the questionnaire showed that those who reported the highest level of physical activity (that is, exercising moderately to vigorously for at least 150 minutes per week) had a statistically significantly lower risk of developing 19 chronic conditions, including cardiovascular disorders. diseases, cancer, respiratory diseases and diabetes.

The findings further suggest that patients who are the least active (that is, they reported little to no exercise in a given week) are at increased risk of developing chronic disease.

Based on these results, the Iowa researchers also recommend that health care systems provide information about health and wellness services for physically inactive patients who are most at risk.

“In our healthcare environment, there is no easy route for a physician to get reimbursed for helping patients become more physically active,” said Carr, the study’s corresponding author. “And so for these patients, many of whom report insufficient activity, we need options to easily connect them with support services such as exercise prescriptions and/or community health specialists.”

Most hospitals in the United States do not ask patients about their physical activity, and no hospital system in the Midwest has done so, according to the researchers.

In this study, Carr collaborated with Britt Marcussen, a family medicine physician at UI Health Care, to offer the questionnaire to patients visiting for annual wellness exam appointments. The research period ran from November 2017 to December 2022.

The Exercise Vital Sign survey, as the questionnaire is called, asked patients two questions and answered them on a tablet:

• “On average, how many days per week do you engage in moderate to vigorous exercise (such as a brisk walk)?” (0-7 days)
• “How many minutes do you practice at this level on average?”

Carr and his team propose to make the survey available to all patients.

“This two-question survey typically takes less than 30 seconds for a patient to complete, so it doesn’t interfere with their visit. But it can tell us a lot about that patient’s overall health,” says Carr.

The researchers also compared the results of patients who completed the surveys with more than 33,000 patients who were not offered the survey in other parts of the hospital. The researchers found that patients who took the survey were younger and in better health than the patient population who did not receive the questionnaire, based on analyzing the electronic medical records of all patients.

Although the link between physical activity and a reduced risk of chronic disease is well known, the researchers say the study underlines the value of asking patients about their physical activity levels.

“We believe this finding is the result of patients who take the time to complete annual wellness exams also take more time to engage in healthy behaviors such as being physically active,” says Carr.

In a related studypublished in the Journal of Physical Activity and Health, Carr’s team found that when healthcare providers billed for providing exercise advice to patients, these bills were reimbursed by insurers in almost 95% of cases.

“Our findings suggest that recommended billing codes for physical activity are reimbursed at a high rate when providers submit them for reimbursement, reinforcing the idea of ​​making physical activity surveys and counseling services available,” Carr says.

Cole Chapman, assistant professor in the College of Pharmacy, is the first author of the study. Chapman, who joined the Faculty of Pharmacy in 2019 after earning a bachelor’s and doctorate degree from Iowa, collected and analyzed the data from the patients’ electronic medical records.

Marcussen and Mary Schroeder, associate professor in the College of Pharmacy’s Department of Pharmacy Practice and Science, are co-authors of the study.