Randomised controlled trial of informal team sports for cardiorespiratory fitness and health benefit in Pacific adults

Biddle, M. G. et al

Journal of Primary Health Care

2011

Journal of Primary Health Care

Correspondence to: C. Raina Elley, Department of General Practice and Primary Health Care, School of Population Health, The University of Auckland: c.elley@auckland.ac.nz

Rates of obesity among Pacific people in New Zealand are increasing, with recent estimates indicating that 64% of Pacific adults are classified as obese compared with approximately 23% of European and other groups.Moreover, Pacific children are 5.3 times more likely to develop obesity than children from other ethnic groups.

The prevalence of diabetes is also much higher among Pacific people than most other ethnic groups in New Zealand, and has been estimated from a recent study to be 19.5% for Pacific adults compared with 3.9% for Europeans and 12.0% for Maori.Impaired Glucose Tolerance (IGT), a precursor condition to diabetes, is present in 7.9% of Pacific people compared with 7.3% of Maori and 6.7% Europeans.These statistics illustrate that diabetes and IGT inflict considerable morbidity on the New Zealand population, particularly within Pacific communities. Since diabetes and IGT are also underlying risk factors for the development of cardiovascular disease (CVD),effective and engaging interventions are needed to address the escalating and widespread problem of diabetes within this population.

Keywords:

Pacific, Health, Health benefits, Lifestyle, Fitness, Activity, Cardio vascular, Diabetes, Exercise, Weight management

For information on how to access the full text of this article, go to http://www.rnzcgp.org.nz/jphc-december-2011/ or contact your local or organisational library for assistance

Quantitative

International

Facilities, Outdoor Recreation, Recreation, Sport

Pacific

Barriers, Benefits, Impacts- social, Injuries, Participation

1169

June 28, 2012

June 28, 2012