Association Between Employment Status and Objectively Measured Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior: The Maastricht Study

Objective: To examine the association between employment status and physical activity and sedentarybehavior.Methods:We included 2045 participants from The Maastricht Study, who used a thigh-wornaccelerometer. We compared time spent sedentary, standing, stepping and higher intensity physicalactivity between participants with different employment status (non-employed or low-, intermediate- orhigh-level occupation) with ANOVA.Results: Participantsinlow-level occupationswere less sedentaryand standing and stepping morethan those in other occupational categoriesand nonemployedparticipants.Among the employed, the differenceswere mostly observed on weekdays,whereas the differences in sedentary time and standing between those in low-level occupations andnon-employed participants were evident both on weekdays and weekend days.Conclusions:Those inlow-level occupational category were less sedentary and more active than non-employed and those inother occupational categories, especially on weekdays.</p

An IGF-I promoter polymorphism modifies the relationships between birth weight and risk factors for cardiovascular disease and diabetes at age 36

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether IGF-I promoter polymorphism was associated with birth weight and risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type 2 diabetes (T2DM), and whether the birth weight – risk factor relationship was the same for each genotype. DESIGN AND PARTICIPANTS: 264 subjects (mean age 36 years) had data available on birth weight, IGF-I promoter polymorphism genotype, CVD and T2DM risk factors. Student's t-test and regression analyses were applied to analyse differences in birth weight and differences in the birth weight – risk factors relationship between the genotypes. RESULTS: Male variant carriers (VCs) of the IGF-I promoter polymorphism had a 0.2 kg lower birth weight than men with the wild type allele (p = 0.009). Of the risk factors for CVD and T2DM, solely LDL concentration was associated with the genotype for the polymorphism. Most birth weight – risk factor relationships were stronger in the VC subjects; among others the birth weight – systolic blood pressure relationship: 1 kg lower birth weight was related to an 8.0 mmHg higher systolic blood pressure CONCLUSION: The polymorphism in the promoter region of the IGF-I gene is related to birth weight in men only, and to LDL concentration only. Furthermore, the genotype for this polymorphism modified the relationships between birth weight and the risk factors, especially for systolic and diastolic blood pressure

Perivascular Fat and the Microcirculation: Relevance to Insulin Resistance, Diabetes, and Cardiovascular Disease

Type 2 diabetes and its major risk factor, obesity, are a growing burden for public health. The mechanisms that connect obesity and its related disorders, such as insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and hypertension, are still undefined. Microvascular dysfunction may be a pathophysiologic link between insulin resistance and hypertension in obesity. Many studies have shown that adipose tissue-derived substances (adipokines) interact with (micro)vascular function and influence insulin sensitivity. In the past, research focused on adipokines from perivascular adipose tissue (PVAT). In this review, we focus on the interactions between adipokines, predominantly from PVAT, and microvascular function in relation to the development of insulin resistance, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease