Obesity and Cardiovascular Fitness Levels in the US Workforce

Problem/Objective: The relationship between occupation, obesity, and cardiovascular fitness has not been fully investigated. The prevalence of obesity across worker subgroups varies significantly. The present study assesses differences in cardiovascular fitness levels as measured by estimated maximal oxygen uptake (VO2 max) by occupational subgroups.

Methods: Our sample is comprised of employed individuals 20 years of age and older from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2004. VO2 max from a diverse sample of US workers was used to categorize individuals as low, moderate, or high fitness using age- and sex-specific cutpoints. Obesity prevalence, mean percentage body fat, mean estimated VO2 max, and percentage of workers with low cardiovascular fitness levels were reported by gender for 40 occupational subgroups.

Results: Nearly 17% of US workers had low cardiovascular fitness (representing approximately 22.4 million). Results showed significant differences in the levels of obesity, percentage body fat, estimated VO2 max, and low cardiovascular fitness levels by occupational subgroups. “Miscellaneous food preparation and service workers” and “Sales, retail, and personal services workers” showed significantly lower cardiovascular fitness relative to all workers. “Executives, administrators, and managers” and “Health diagnosing, assessing, and treating occupations” were significantly less likely to be categorized as having low cardiovascular fitness.

Conclusions: Cardiovascular fitness levels vary significantly across occupational subgroups. Targeted workplace fitness programs are needed for at-risk worker groups.