Trends in cardiorespiratory fitness among apparently healthy adults from the Ball State Adult Fitness Longitudinal Lifestyle STudy (BALL ST) cohort from 1970-2019.

• Main Authors: Matthew P Harber, McKenzie Metz, James E Peterman, Mitchell H Whaley, Bradley S Fleenor, Leonard A Kaminsky
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2020-01-01
• Series: PLoS ONE
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0242995

<h4>Introduction</h4>Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is a strong independent predictor of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and CVD mortality. However, little is known in regards to how CRF has trended in apparently healthy adults over the past several decades.<h4>Purpose</h4>To analyze trends in CRF and CVD risk factors over the last 50 years in a population of apparently healthy adult men and women.<h4>Methods</h4>Participants were 4,214 apparently healthy adults (2,390 men and 1,824 women) from the Ball State Adult Fitness Longitudinal Lifestyle STudy (BALL ST) that performed maximal cardiopulmonary exercise testing between 1970-2019 for the assessment of CRF defined as VO2max (ml/kg/min). Participants were self-referred either to a community-based exercise program, fitness testing, or were research subjects in exercise related studies and were placed into groups by decade based on testing date.<h4>Results</h4>CRF showed a general trend to decline (P<0.05) from the 1970s to the 2000s with an increase (P<0.05) from the 2000s to the 2010s for both men and women. This pattern persisted for age and sex-adjusted CRF level, determined by Fitness Registry and the Importance of Exercise: A National Data Base (FRIEND). For both women and men, CRF across the decades was associated (P<0.05) with the prevalence of physical inactivity, smoking, obesity, dyslipidemia and hypertension, and with diabetes in men only.<h4>Conclusion</h4>CRF declined from 1970 through the 2000s in a cohort of apparently healthy men and women which was associated with worsening CVD risk profiles. However, the decline in CRF was attenuated over the past decade which may have a positive impact on future CVD in the population. Promoting physical activity to increase CRF should be a primary aspect of CVD prevention programs.