[Association of active commuting with obesity: findings from the Chilean National Health Survey 2009-2010].

BACKGROUND: Active commuting is associated with a lower risk for obesity in developed countries.

AIM: To investigate the association between active commuting and obesity risk in Chile.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: Active commuting was measured using the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ v2) in 5,293 participants from the Chilean National Health Survey 2009-2010. Body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) were the study outcomes. The association between active commuting and obesity was investigated using linear and logistic regression analysis.

RESULTS: Thirty four percent of responders [95% confidence intervals (CI): 32.6-35.1] were passive commuters. Active commuters had a lower BMI and WC than their passive counterparts. Thirty minutes increment in active commuting were associated with a -0.20 kg.m-2 lower BMI [95% CI: -0.33 to -0.07, p < 0.01] and a -076 cm lower WC [95% CI: -1.08 to -0.43, p < 0.01]. The odds of having a BMI > 25 kg.m-2 was 0.93 [95% CI: 0.88 to 0.98, p = 0.01] per every 30 minutes' increment in active commuting, whereas the odds for central obesity was 0.87 [95% CI: 0.82 to 0.92, p < 0.01].

CONCLUSIONS: Active commuting is associated with a lower adiposity and lower risk for obesity in Chilean adults.