Physical activity levels in individuals with asthma: a comparison between wearable device users and non-users: 2017 BRFSS.

Objective: Despite the health benefits of physical activity (PA), many individuals with asthma are not sufficiently active. Wearable devices (WD) are increasingly popular tools for promoting PA, but limited research has examined their effectiveness among individuals with asthma. This study aims to compare PA levels between WD users and non-users with asthma.

Methods: Data were drawn from the 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Participants who self-reported a diagnosis of asthma were included in this secondary data analysis. Based on the self-report, participants were categorized as WD users or non-users. PA measures included total weekly minutes of PA, weekly minutes of vigorous PA, and whether participants met national PA guidelines. Survey-weighted unadjusted and adjusted linear and logistic regression analyses were conducted to assess associations between WD use and PA outcomes.

Results: Among the included 497 participants with asthma, 28.19% (95% CI [19.36, 38.30]) of participants were WD users and 71.81% (95% CI [61.7, 80.64]) were non-users. 65.91% (95% CI [57.36, 73.82]) of the participants met the PA guidelines. The unadjusted and adjusted linear regressions found no statistically significant differences in weekly PA and weekly vigorous PA between WD users and non-users. Further, no statistically significant associations were found between WD usage and meeting PA guidelines (p > .05).

Conclusions: WD use was not associated with higher PA levels among individuals with asthma. Further research is needed to identify strategies that enhance the effectiveness of WD in promoting PA in this population.