To access publisher's full text version of this article click on the hyperlink below ; Very few studies have examined whether a long-term beneficial effect of physical activity on lung function can be influenced by living in polluted urban areas. We assessed whether annual average residential concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO Associations between repeated assessments (at 27-57 and 39-67 years) of being physically active (physical activity: ≥2 times and ≥1 h per week) and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV Among current smokers, physical activity and lung function were positively associated regardless of air pollution levels. Among never-smokers, physical activity was associated with lung function in areas with low/medium NO ; European Union
Publisher's version (útgefin grein) ; Background: Previous studies have reported an association between weight increase and excess lung function decline in young adults followed for short periods. We aimed to estimate lung function trajectories during adulthood from 20-year weight change profiles using data from the population-based European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS). Methods: We included 3673 participants recruited at age 20-44 years with repeated measurements of weight and lung function (forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV 1)) in three study waves (1991-93, 1999-2003, 2010-14) until they were 39-67 years of age. We classified subjects into weight change profiles according to baseline body mass index (BMI) categories and weight change over 20 years. We estimated trajectories of lung function over time as a function of weight change profiles using population-averaged generalised estimating equations. Results: In individuals with normal BMI, overweight and obesity at baseline, moderate (0.25-1 kg/year) and high weight gain (>1 kg/year) during follow-up were associated with accelerated FVC and FEV 1 declines. Compared with participants with baseline normal BMI and stable weight (±0.25 kg/year), obese individuals with high weight gain during follow-up had -1011 mL (95% CI -1.259 to -763) lower estimated FVC at 65 years despite similar estimated FVC levels at 25 years. Obese individuals at baseline who lost weight (<-0.25 kg/year) exhibited an attenuation of FVC and FEV 1 declines. We found no association between weight change profiles and FEV 1 /FVC decline. Conclusion: Moderate and high weight gain over 20 years was associated with accelerated lung function decline, while weight loss was related to its attenuation. Control of weight gain is important for maintaining good lung function in adult life. ; Funding The present analyses are part of the ageing lungs in european cohorts (alec) study (www.alecstudy.org), which has received funding from the european Union's horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement no. 633212. The local investigators and funding agencies for the european community respiratory health survey are reported in the online supplement. isglobal is a member of the cerca Programme, generalitat de catalunya. ; Peer Reviewed