PhD defence: Physical work demands and fitness

Effects on risk factors for cardiovascular disease from a randomized controlled trial among cleaners

Mette Korshøj

PhD thesis

Cardiovascular disease is the most frequent cause of death. Cleaners exposed to high occupational physical activity suffer from an increased prevalence of cardiovascular disease.

This PhD-study investigated whether this 4-months aerobic exercise worksite intervention would improve or impair risk factors for cardiovascular disease. The results showed that the intervention led to a lowered risk for cardiovascular disease, via an enhanced cardiorespiratory fitness, a reduced resting heart rate, and aerobic workload. The aerobic exercise led to an elevated blood pressure.

Further studies are needed to understand the mechanisms behind the cardiovascular effects seen from high occupational physical activity, and to make recommendations for the prevention of cardiovascular disease among workers exposed to high occupational physical activity and high aerobic workloads.

2015, 200 pages,
ISBN 978 87 9177

Time

21 September 2015, 10.15

Place

Aud. 1, August Krogh Building, Universitetsparken 13, DK-2100 Copenhagen

Opponents

Ylva Hellsten (chair), Professor, Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.

Claes Håkan Nygård, Professor, School of Health Sciences, University of Tampere, Finland.

Karin Proper, Senior researcher and project leader, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, and VU Medical Center, Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Supervisor

Peter Krustrup, professor, Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.

Co supervisors

Andreas Holtermann, Professor, National Research Centre for the Working Environment.

Karen Søgaard, Professor, University of Sourthern Denmark.