Department of Epidemiology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA.
College of Health Professions/College of Nursing, Walden University, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
LGBT Health. 2023 Feb-Mar;10(2):158-168. doi: 10.1089/lgbt.2021.0344. Epub 2022 Sep 29.
This study aimed to examine physical activity (PA) as a protective measure of health outcomes among sexual minority (SM) and heterosexual adults. Using data from the 2018 National Health Interview Survey, differences in key health outcomes between three groups (heterosexual, SM, and "other") and the mediating effects of PA were explored. Chi-square tests were used to examine group differences. Multinomial logistic regression models were fit to examine associations between PA and health outcomes (body mass index [BMI], psychological distress, health status, and use of alcohol, cigarettes, and e-cigarettes). Compared with heterosexual respondents, "other" adults had higher levels of BMI above 24.9 and were less active; SM respondents had elevated levels of alcohol use, smoking, binge drinking, and psychological distress, and reported worse overall health status. Unadjusted models showed that PA served as a protective factor for BMI above 30 and health status for all groups. PA was also protective for BMI below or above 18.5-24.9, smoking, psychological distress, and health status for both heterosexual and SM groups. Alternatively, PA behaved as a risk factor for alcohol use and binge drinking for all groups. Adjusted modeling removed PA as a risk factor for light alcohol use and binge drinking for SM respondents and added a protective factor for e-cigarette use for heterosexual respondents. This study adds to current literature on health disparities affecting SM populations and the health benefits associated with PA. Further research is needed to explore tailored PA intervention for SM populations and those who mark "other," "something else," "don't know," or refuse to answer questions on sexual orientation.
本研究旨在探讨身体活动（PA）对性少数群体（SM）和异性恋成年人健康结果的保护作用。使用 2018 年全国健康访谈调查的数据，探讨了三组（异性恋、SM 和“其他”）之间关键健康结果的差异以及 PA 的中介作用。卡方检验用于检验组间差异。多分类逻辑回归模型用于检验 PA 与健康结果（体重指数[BMI]、心理困扰、健康状况以及酒精、香烟和电子烟的使用）之间的关联。与异性恋受访者相比，“其他”成年人的 BMI 超过 24.9 且活跃度较低；SM 受访者的饮酒、吸烟、狂饮和心理困扰水平较高，总体健康状况较差。未调整模型显示，PA 是所有组 BMI 超过 30 和健康状况的保护因素。PA 对所有组的 BMI 在 18.5-24.9 以下和以上、吸烟、心理困扰和健康状况也是保护因素。相反，PA 对所有组的饮酒和狂饮行为是风险因素。调整模型消除了 PA 对 SM 受访者轻度饮酒和狂饮的风险因素，并增加了对异性恋受访者电子烟使用的保护因素。本研究增加了关于影响 SM 人群的健康差异和与 PA 相关的健康益处的现有文献。需要进一步研究探索针对 SM 人群和那些标记“其他”、“其他”、“不知道”或拒绝回答性取向问题的人的定制 PA 干预措施。
