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Background: The exclusion of participants with invalid accelerometry data (IAD) may lead to biased results and/or lack of generalizability in large population studies. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether demographic, behavioral, and biological differences occur between those with IAD and valid accelerometry data (VAD) among adults using a representative sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized U.S. population., Methods: Ambulatory participants from NHANES (2003-2004) who were 20-85 years of age were included in the current study and wore an ActiGraph 7164 accelerometer for 7 days. A "valid person" was defined as those with 4 or more days of at least 10+ hrs of monitoring per day. Among adults (20-85 yrs), 3088 participants provided VAD and 987 provided IAD. Demographic, behavioral, and biological information were obtained from the household interview or from data obtained in a mobile examination center., Results: Differences were observed in age, BMI, ethnicity, education, smoking status, marital status, use of street drugs, current health status, HDL-cholesterol, C-reactive protein, self-reported vigorous physical activity, and plasma glucose levels between those with VAD and IAD., Conclusions: Investigators should take into consideration the potential cut-off bias in interpreting results based on data that excludes IAD participants.

Background: The Joint Canada/United States Survey of Health (JCUSH) was a one-time collaborative survey undertaken by Statistics Canada and the National Center for Health Statistics., Methods: This analysis provides country-, sex-, and age-specific comparative markers of adult obesity and sedentarism, defined as independent and collective groupings of self-reported leisure-time inactivity (<1.5 MET-hours/day), usual occupational sitting, and no/low active transportation (<1 hour/week). Logistic regression assessed the likelihood of sedentarism in U.S. vs. Canada, with and without adjusting for BMI-defined obesity categories: healthy weight (18.5 ≤ BMI <25 kg/m2; n = 3542), overweight (25 ≤ BMI < 30 kg/m2; n = 2,651), and obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2; n = 1470)., Results: Compared with Canadians, U.S. adults are 24% more likely to be overweight/ obese, 59% more likely to be inactive in leisure-time, 19% more likely to report no/low active transportation, and 39% more likely to collectively report all sedentarism markers, adjusting for sex and age. Focusing on obese individuals in both countries, obese U.S. residents were 90% more likely to be inactive during leisure-time, 41% more likely to report no/low active transportation, and 73% more likely to report all sedentarism markers., Conclusions: This ecological analysis sheds light on differential risks of obesity and sedentarism in these neighboring countries.

The aim of this review is to provide a scientific update on the current guidelines for both health and weight management. There has been confusion among health professionals as to which physical activity guidelines should be used to help various specific populations adopt more active lifestyles. We first review the history of the physical activity guidelines. Using the physical activity guidelines in clinical practice is also explored. We also describe common barriers to physical that overweight individuals report and we discuss when it is appropriate for a health care professional to seek a referral from an exercise scientist to help sedentary adults increase their levels of activity. It is important for individuals who care for overweight patients and sedentary adults to understand the current physical guidelines and how these guidelines can be worked into clinical practice.

Background: This intervention promoted stair use among people attending the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) annual meeting., Methods: All attendees using the stairs or escalators in the main lobby were unobtrusively observed for 3 days and coded for activity choices to get to the second floor. During day 2, a prominent sign stating "Be a role model. Use the stairs!" encouraged pointof- choice decisions favoring stairs over the escalator. The sign was removed on day 3., Results: 16,978 observations were made. Stair use increased from 22.0% on day 1 to 29.3% and 26.8% on days 2 and 3, respectively (P values < .001). Active choices (stair use or walk up escalator) increased from 28.3% on day 1 to 40.1% and 40.2% on subsequent days. Analyses were similar after adjustment for gender, estimated age category, and race., Conclusions: Relatively few conference attendees were persuaded to model stair-use behavior. Health professionals should be encouraged to be "active living" role models.