How Stress Is Related to Age, Education, Physical Activity, Body Mass Index, and Body Fat Percentage in Adult Polish Men?

Monika Lopuszanska-Dawid (), Przemysław Kupis, Anna Lipowicz, Halina Kołodziej and Alicja Szklarska
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Monika Lopuszanska-Dawid: Department of Human Biology, Faculty of Physical Education, Józef Piłsudski University of Physical Education in Warsaw, 00-968 Warsaw, Poland
Przemysław Kupis: Department of Human Biology, Faculty of Physical Education, Józef Piłsudski University of Physical Education in Warsaw, 00-968 Warsaw, Poland
Anna Lipowicz: Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Biology and Animal Science, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, 50-375 Wroclaw, Poland
Halina Kołodziej: Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Biology and Animal Science, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, 50-375 Wroclaw, Poland
Alicja Szklarska: Polish Academy of Sciences, Poland, Palace of Culture and Science, Defilad Square 1, 00-901 Warsaw, Poland

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 19, 1-16

Abstract: Stressful events and chronic tension are considered a burden and a threat to physical, mental, and social health. The aim of the study was to demonstrate the associations of variation in stress exposure with social factors, physical activity, basic components of physical fitness, body mass index (BMI) and percentage of body fat (BFP). An additional objective was to identify the main BFP modifiers among those analyzed. The material consisted of data of ethnically homogeneous group 355 men (32–87 yrs), invited to the study as part of the Wroclaw Male Study research project. The analyzed features included socioeconomic status (age, educational level), elements of lifestyle (physical activity), major and most important stressful life events—Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS) and basic parameters of the somatic structure of the body (BMI, BFP). Statistical analyses included: chi-square test, Mann–Whitney U test and backward stepwise regression (significance level α = 0.05). Stress exposure showed significant socioeconomic variation among the adult Poles studied. Higher levels of education were associated with higher levels of stress. Significant correlations between SRRS and physical activity were found, especially in men older than 60 years and with higher levels of education. A positive relationship was shown between SRRS and BFP, especially in men under 60 years of age. BFP appeared to depend mainly on age and stress. The main determinants of SRRS were age and education level, while BFP turned out to be more sensitive to stress than BMI. The modifying force of physical activity for SRRS appears to be age dependent.

Keywords: Wroclaw Male Study; stressor; educational level; health behaviors; Poland (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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