Abstract
Introduction:
Pulmonary rehabilitation, including aerobic exercise and strength training, improves function, such as spirometric indices, in lung disease. However, we found spirometry did not correlate with physical activity (PA) in healthy adolescents (Smith ERJ: 42(4), 2016). To address whether muscle strength did, we measured these adolescents' handgrip strength and correlated it with spirometry.
Methods:
In 1846 non-smoking, non-asthmatic Germans (age 15.2 years, 47% male), we modeled spirometric indices as functions of handgrip strength by linear regression in each sex, corrected for factors including age, height, and lean body mass.
Results:
Handgrip averaged 35.4 (SD 7.3) kg in boys, 26.6 (4.2) in girls. Spirometric volumes and flows increased linearly with handgrip. In boys each kg handgrip was associated with about 28 mL greater FEV1 and FVC; 60 mL/sec faster PEF; and 38 mL/sec faster FEF2575. Effects were 10-30% smaller in girls (all p<0.0001) and stable when Z-scores for spirometry and grip were modeled, after further correction for environment and/or other exposures, and consistent across stages of puberty.
Conclusions:
Grip strength was associated with spirometry in a cohort of healthy adolescents whose PA was not. Thus, research into PA's relationship with lung function should consider strength as well as total PA. Strength training may benefit healthy lungs; interventions are needed to prove causality.
Publication types
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Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
MeSH terms
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Adolescent
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Cohort Studies
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Exercise
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Female
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Forced Expiratory Volume
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Germany
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Hand Strength*
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Humans
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Lung / physiology
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Male
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Sensitivity and Specificity
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Sexual Maturation
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Spirometry*
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Surveys and Questionnaires
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Vital Capacity
Grants and funding
This study was part of the 15-year followup of two German birth cohorts, GINIplus (German Infant Study on the influence of Nutrition Intervention PLUS environmental and genetic influences on allergy development) and LISAplus (Influence of lifestyle factors on the development of the immune system and allergies Plus the influence of traffic emissions and genetics). We thank the GINIplus and LISAplus Study Groups for all their excellent work. The GINIplus Study Group includes the following: Institute of Epidemiology I, Helmholtz Zentrum München—German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg (J. Heinrich, I. Brüske, H. Schulz, C. Flexeder, C. Zeller, M. Standl, M. Schnappinger, M. Sußmann, E. Thiering, C. Tiesler); Research Institute, Department of Pediatrics, Marien-Hospital, Wesel (D. Berdel, A. von Berg, B. Filipiak-Pittroff); Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Dr von Hauner Children’s Hospital (S. Koletzko, K. Werkstetter); Department of Pediatrics, Technische Universität München and Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bayern (C.P. Bauer, U. Hoffmann); and IUF-Leibniz Institute for Environmental Research, Düsseldorf (B. Hoffmann, E. Link, C. Klümper, U. Krämer). The LISAplus Study Group includes the following: Institute of Epidemiology I, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health (J. Heinrich, I. Brüske, H. Schulz, M. Standl, M. Schnappinger, M. Sußmann, E. Thiering, C. Tiesler, C. Flexeder, C. Zeller); Department of Pediatrics, Marien Hospital Wesel, Wesel (A. von Berg); Pediatric Practice, Bad Honnef (B. Schaaf); Technical University, Munich (C.P. Bauer, U. Hoffmann); Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Department of Environmental Immunology/Core Facility Studies, Leipzig (I. Lehmann, M. Bauer, G. Herberth, J. Müller, S. Röder and M. Schilde); Department of Pediatrics, Municipal Hospital ‘St. Georg’, Leipzig (M. Borte, U. Diez, C. Dorn, E. Braun); and ZAUM – Center for Allergy and Environment, Technical University Munich (M. Ollert, J. Grosch). The GINIplus study was mainly supported for the first 3 years of the Federal Ministry for Education, Science, Research and Technology (interventional arm) and Helmholtz Zentrum Munich (former GSF) (observational arm). The 4 year, 6 year, and 10 year follow-up examinations of the GINIplus study were covered from the respective budgets of the 4 study centres: Helmholtz Zentrum Munich, Research Institute at Marien-Hospital Wesel, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Technical University Munich, and from 6 years onwards also from IUF—Leibniz Research-Institute for Environmental Medicine at the University of Düsseldorf, and a grant from the Federal Ministry for Environment (IUF Düsseldorf, FKZ 20462296). The 15-year follow-up of the GINI study was supported by the companies Mead Johnson and Nestle and in cooperation with European Studies (e.g. MeDALL, ESCAPE). Some projects not directly related to the intervention effect of the hydrolyzates (e.g. effect of cesarean section, effect of solid food introduction) were partly supported by Nestle, Mead Johnson, Numico, Pharmacia and Stiftung Kindergesundheit, and in cooperation with European studies (e.g. MeDALL). The LISAplus study was mainly supported by grants from the Federal Ministry for Education, Science, Research and Technology and in addition from Helmholtz Zentrum Munich (former GSF), Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research—UFZ, Leipzig, Research Institute at Marien-Hospital Wesel, Pediatric Practice, Bad Honnef for the first 2 years. The 4 year, 6 year, and 10 year follow-up examinations of the LISAplus study were covered from the respective budgets of the involved partners (Helmholtz Zentrum Munich (former GSF), Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research—UFZ, Leipzig, Research Institute at Marien-Hospital Wesel, Pediatric Practice, Bad Honnef, IUF – Leibniz-Research Institute for Environmental Medicine at the University of Düsseldorf) and in addition by a grant from the Federal Ministry for Environment (IUF Düsseldorf, FKZ 20462296). This work was supported by the Comprehensive Pneumology Center Munich (CPC-M) as member of the German Center for Lung Research. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.