Minority Health and Health Equity Archive

Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/21769

Welcome to the Minority Health and Health Equity Archive (MHHEA), an electronic archive for digital resource materials in the fields of minority health and health disparities research and policy. It is offered as a no-charge resource to the public, academic scholars and health science researchers interested in the elimination of racial and ethnic health disparities.

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Author: search.filters.author.Sengupta , PSubject: search.filters.subject.Global Health

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    A Small-scale Cross-sectional Study for the Assessment of Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Relation to Body Composition and Morphometric Characters in Fishermen of Araku Valley, Andhra Pradesh, India
    (2014) Sengupta , P
    BACKGROUND: The people residing in coastal areas of Visakhapatnam are mostly engaged in fishery, which is always been a physically demanding job, and numerous factors have direct or indirect impact on the health of fishermen; but, the data about their physical fitness or health status is quite scanty. Thus, the present study was conducted to assess their cardiorespiratory fitness pattern, as well as morphometric characters, which may be influenced by their occupation. METHODS: In this retrospective cohort study, 25 young fishermen (mean age of 22.8 ± 1.92 years) were randomly selected from Araku valley of Visakhapatnam District, Andhra Pradesh and compared with 25 subjects who were randomly selected from college students (mean age of 21.9 ± 2.25 years) of Kolkata, West Bengal. Some physical and physiological fitness variables including height, weight, body mass index, body surface area, physical fitness index, anaerobic power, and energy expenditure were measured along with their morphometric characters. RESULTS: Analysis of data indicated a significant difference in blood pressure, physical fitness index, energy expenditure, body fat percent and anaerobic power among fishermen compared to controls. However, there were no changes in morphometric characters between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: Findings of this small-scale population-based study indicated that health and physical fitness of young fishermen is under the influence of both occupational workload and nutritional status, as found by body composition and morphometric characters.
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    Evaluation of physical fitness and weight status among fisherwomen in relation to their occupational workload
    (2014) Sengupta , P
    BACKGROUND: Fisherwomen contribute significantly to the coastal economy of Eastern India; however, data about their physical fitness and weight status are scant. OBJECTIVES: The present cross-sectional study was designed to investigate cardiorespiratory fitness and weight status of fisherwomen, which may be influenced by their occupational workload, using morphometric and anthropometric measures. METHODS: The study was conducted among young fisherwomen (mean age 23.7 years) randomly selected from Araku, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, and among young women who are not engaged in the fishing industry but are residents of Araku, who served as controls (mean age 21.3 years). Measurements of body composition included several anthropometric variables, while physical efficiency parameters included a physical fitness index (PFI), VO2max, total energy expenditure, and anaerobic capacity. RESULTS: A significant difference (p<0.05) in body mass index (BMI), body surface area (BSA), body fat percentage, diastolic blood pressure, fitness index, total energy expenditure, and anaerobic power was found in fisherwomen compared with controls. Analysis of collected data showed that the majority of the fisherwomen studied have a normal range of BMI (42%), but 6% of them were found to be mildly overweight. They also showed lower fat mass (13.5 [ ± 3.87]kg) and lower waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and conicity index. Additionally, they were found to have a moderate level of physical fitness (64.3 [ ± 1.97]%) and a higher total energy expenditure (4.92 [ ± 0.52]k.cal.min(-2)). CONCLUSION: This study implies that physical fitness and weight status of young fisherwomen in Eastern India are influenced by their occupational workload.