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A Canadian peer-reviewed journal of population health and health services research

June 2012

Prevalence and correlates of folic acid supplement use in Canada

by Cynthia K. Colapinto, Deborah L. O'Connor, Lise Dubois and Mark S. Tremblay

Folate, one of the B-vitamins, is a key nutrient in reducing the risk of neural tube defects. It plays an important role in metabolic pathways that involve vitamin B₁₂ and homocysteine. While folate occurs naturally in many foods, such as dark green vegetables and legumes, the most common synthetic form in fortified foods and supplements is folic acid. Members of the general population do not commonly need supplemental folic acid unless it is recommended by a health care professional for certain medical conditions. In fact, high levels of supplemental folic acid may mask and exacerbate vitamin B₁₂ deficiency, particularly in the elderly, which could result in neurological damage.

Urban sprawl and its relationship with active transportation, physical activity and obesity in Canadian youth

by Laura Seliske, William Pickett and Ian Janssen

Over the past 30 years, the prevalence of overweight and obesity has nearly tripled among Canadian youth aged 12 to 17, thereby potentially increasing the physical, mental and social problems associated with obesity in young people. Furthermore, obesity tends to persist, with 60% to 90% of obese adolescents remaining obese into adulthood. To develop effective public health strategies, an understanding of the determinants of obesity is important. Because lack of moderate-to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) is acknowledged to be one of those determinants, researchers are interested in features of the surrounding environment that promote or inhibit physical activity.

May 2012

Abdominal obesity and cardiovascular disease risk factors within body mass index categories

by Margot Shields, Mark S. Tremblay, Sarah Connor Gorber and Ian Janssen

Elevated body mass index (BMI) is a well-established contributor to the aetiology of cardiovascular disease (CVD). But while BMI is widely used to monitor the prevalence of obesity, it provides no information about the distribution of body fat. Some studies, have found that measures of abdominal obesity, principally, waist circumference (WC), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), and more recently, waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), are more closely related to CVD morbidity and mortality than is BMI. However, reviews of the literature conducted to assess which measure of adiposity is most strongly associated with CVD have yielded inconsistent conclusions.

Measures of abdominal obesity within body mass index categories, 1981 and 2007-2009

by Margot Shields, Mark S. Tremblay, Sarah Connor Gorber and Ian Janssen

Body mass index (BMI), a measure of weight in relation to height, is the most widely used indicator of obesity. A BMI-based system has long been employed to classify adults in categories based on health risk.

April 2012

Physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep in Canadian children: Parent-report versus direct measures and relative associations with health risk

by Rachel C. Colley, Suzy L. Wong, Didier Garriguet, Ian Janssen, Sarah Connor Gorber and Mark S. Tremblay

Among Canadian children, obesity rates are high, physical fitness has decreased, and few meet current physical activity recommendations. Research focused on organized, purposeful moderateto- vigorous physical activity (MVPA) has tended to ignore sedentary behaviour and sleep,4 which are independently associated with obesity and other aspects of health.

Daily patterns of physical activity among Canadians

by Didier Garriguet and Rachel C. Colley

Canadian children and youth are more active on weekdays than on weekends, while adults have relatively consistent levels of physical activity regardless of the day of the week. At all ages, but particularly among children and youth, most physical activity occurs between 11:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., with distinct peaks at lunch time and in the afternoon just after school or work. Time-stamped objective measurement tools allow researchers to determine not only who is doing enough to meet physical activity guidelines, but also when that activity is occurring.