142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

Annual Meeting Recordings are now available for purchase

312187
Examining physical activity levels and attitudes to physical activity in older Mexican women following six-month lifestyle intervention program

142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition (November 15 - November 19, 2014): http://www.apha.org/events-and-meetings/annual
Tuesday, November 18, 2014 : 1:30 PM - 1:50 PM

Emerson Sebastiao, Doctoral Candidate , Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Urbana, IL
Deborah Linares, M.A. , Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign,, IL
Patricia Galvez, MSc , Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Champaign, IL
Julie Bobitt, Doctoral Candidate , Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Champaign, IL
Brynn Adamson , Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL
Liliana Aguayo , Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Champaign, IL
Dalmina Arias , Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois, Champaign, IL
Nandi Tense , Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois, Champaign, IL
Wojtek Chodzko-Zajko, PhD , Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Urbana, IL
Kelechi Ibe-Lamberts, M.S Community Health , Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL
Andiara Schwingel, Assistant Prof , Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL
Introduction: Older Latinas are particularly vulnerable for unhealthy lifestyle behaviors and the resultant chronic diseases and conditions. This is consistent with the general finding that physical inactivity is a significant public health challenge among minority populations. Culturally sensitive initiatives to promote physical activity (PA) are needed to address this shortcoming. This study examined the effect of a lifestyle intervention program on PA levels and attitudes to PA change in older Mexican women living in United States.

Methods: Eighteen Mexican women ages 50+ (M= 64; SD=9 years) residing in a Hispanic Chicago community were invited to participate in the “Abuelas en Accion” program (AEA). AEA is a culturally sensitive program that incorporates both intergenerational activities and religious content through educational workshops on PA, nutrition, and stress management. Weekly PA was objectively assessed pre- and post- 6 months interventions using Actigraph GT3X accelerometers. Participants’ perception of PA change was assessed by in-depth interviews.

Results: After the intervention, participants significantly increased by 65 min/wk their moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) (t (17) = 2.11, p≤.05). Participants reported changes in their perceptions of PA after the program: greater commitment to better health through PA; greater ability to overcome obstacles to active living; and improved understanding of how incorporating PA into daily life can be important.

Discussion

The lifestyle intervention program was effective in increasing MVPA of the participants. Such increases in MVPA may reflect participants’ efforts to adopt more active lifestyles through active commuting, such as walking and other activities such as shopping.

Learning Areas:

Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Diversity and culture
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health or related education
Public health or related research

Learning Objectives:
Demonstrate that culturally sensitive initiatives are a promising strategy to increase physical activity in underserved, at risk populations. Demonstrate that combined qualitative and quantitative research designs may result in more meaningful and useful data in studies examining physical activity attitudes and behavior.

Keyword(s): Health Promotion and Education, Latinos

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I helped during the process of the intervention design and data collection. Specific for the data collection, along with another research investigator we were responsible for the physical activity data collection portion.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.