Journal of Men’s Health (JOMH) is published by IMR Press from Volume 17 Issue 1 (2021). Previous articles were published by another publisher on a subscription basis, and they are hosted by IMR Press on imrpress.com as a courtesy and upon agreement with Dougmar Publishing Group.
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS AND PHYSICAL FITNESS VARIABLES AMONG KOREAN ADULTS
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Background:
The relationship between socioeconomic status and physical fitness level is unclear. Therefore, this study examined the relationship between socioeconomic factors and physical fitness among Korean adults.
Participants:
A retrospective analysis of the physical fitness and demographic data extracted from the 2013 National Fitness Award project conducted in Korea. The data from 1,690 men and 1,982 women, 19–64 years-old, were included. Sampling strategy, using 14 clusters and stratifi cation levels, ensured a national representation of the Republic of Korea. The following physical fitness variables were included in the analysis: time on the 50 metre dash run, repetitions of shuttle run, distance of standing long jump, distance of sit-and-reach, number of sit-ups in 1 minute, and grip strength. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to examine whether physical fitness levels were related to occupation (physically active, non-active and other), household income (divided into quartiles) and location of residence (rural or urban), adjusting for age and sex.
Results:
Participants with physically active occupations had higher fitness levels than those with non-active and other occupations. As the household income increased, the fitness levels also tended to increase. Participants living in a small city had higher fitness levels than those living in a large city, except on the 50 metre dash run.
Conclusions:
Physical fitness variables could be aff ected by socioeconomic status.