Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28962607›Full record

ArticleBMC public health2017

Association of informal caregiving with body mass index and frequency of sporting activities: evidence of a population-based study in Germany.

André Hajek, Jens-Oliver Bock, Hans-Helmut König

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC public health, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Objective Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour Patterns Among Informal Carers in the BCS70 Cohort.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

André HajekDepartment of Health Economics and Health Services Research, Hamburg Center for Health Economics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany. a.hajek@uke.de.ORCID 0000-0002-6886-2745
Jens-Oliver BockDepartment of Health Economics and Health Services Research, Hamburg Center for Health Economics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Hans-Helmut KönigDepartment of Health Economics and Health Services Research, Hamburg Center for Health Economics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundWhile most studies focused solely on the comparison between informal caregivers and non-caregivers, little is known about the relation between caregiving time or caregiving activities and lifestyle factors. Thus, the aim of this study was to examine whether informal caregiving time and type of caregiving activities are associated with body mass index (BMI) and the frequency of sporting activities among informal caregivers.

methodsCross-sectional data were gathered from the German Ageing Survey, a nationally representative study among community-dwelling individuals aged ≥40 that includes a total of n = 1380 people who provide informal care services. Self-reported BMI and self-reported frequency of sporting activities (daily; several times a week; once a week; 1-3 times a month; less often; never) were used as dependent variables. The average time of providing informal care per week as well as four different caregiving activities (help around the house; looking after someone; performing nursing care services; help in another way) were included as independent variables. Multiple ordinal and linear regressions were used to estimate the association between caregiving factors and the frequency of sporting activities and BMI, respectively.

resultsAmong the 1380 informal caregivers, 65% provided help around the house, 83% looked after people, 28% provided nursing care services, and 68% provided any other help. Bivariate analyses showed that sporting activities and BMI differed by status of providing nursing care services, whereas the other three types of informal caregiving were not associated with BMI nor frequency of sporting activities except for the latter and provision of help around the house. Multiple regressions showed that BMI increased with caregiving time and performing nursing care services, whereas it was not associated with the other three caregiving activities. Likewise, the frequency of sporting activities decreased only with caregiving time and performing nursing care services.

conclusionsThe present study revealed that caregiving time and performing nursing care services are associated with a higher BMI and a decreased frequency of sporting activities. As both, a higher BMI and fewer sporting activities are in turn related to various adverse health outcomes, this knowledge should be taken into account when planning informal caregiving.

Indexed as

Body Mass IndexAdultAgedAged, 80 and overCaregiversCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleGermanyHumansMaleMiddle AgedSportsSurveys and QuestionnairesBody-mass-indexInformal careObservational studySports

Identifiers

PMID28962607
PMCPMC5622456

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.