The Hertfordshire Physical Activity trial is a randomised controlled trial of the efficacy of aerobic exercise to reduce metabolic risk in healthy older people. Participants were recruited from the Hertfordshire Cohort Study, a population-based birth cohort of 3,000 individuals born between 1931 and 1939 and still residing in Hertfordshire, for whom birth weight data are available.
A total of 106 participants underwent detailed metabolic and anthropometric characterisation at baseline and follow up. This included an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), DEXA scan, abdominal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultrasound scan, liver and muscle spectroscopy and muscle biopsy. Objective measures of physical activity energy expenditure (Actiheart) and aerobic fitness (VO2max) were also acquired. Questionnaires were used to gather data relating to dietary patterns, physical activity (RPAQ), medication use and family history of diabetes. Additional blood samples were aliquoted and stored for future analyses.
Information for researchers
This study is completed. It was Unit led in collaboration with MRC Epidemiology Resource Centre in Southampton, which has responsibility for the Hertfordshire Cohort study. It has the Trial Registration Number ISRCTN60986572, and was funded by the Medical Research Council (MRC).
Data Sharing
Please see our data sharing pages.
Publications
Selected publications:
Finucane FM, Horton J, Purslow LR, Savage DB, Brage S, Besson H, Horton K, Rolfe EDL, Sleigh A, Sharp SJ, Martin HJ, Sayer AA, Cooper C, Ekelund U, Griffin SJ, Wareham NJ. Randomized controlled trial of the efficacy of aerobic exercise in reducing metabolic risk in healthy older people: The Hertfordshire Physical Activity Trial. BMC Endocr Disord. (2009)
Finucane FM, Sharp SJ, Purslow LR, Horton K, Horton J, Savage DB, Brage S, Besson H, Rolfe EDL, Sleigh A, Martin HJ, Sayer AA, Cooper C, Ekelund U, Griffin SJ, Wareham NJ. The effects of aerobic exercise on metabolic risk, insulin sensitivity and intrahepatic lipid in healthy older people from the Hertfordshire Cohort Study: a randomised controlled trial. Diabetologia. (2010)
Denison HJ, Syddall HE, Dodds R, Martin H, Finucane FM, Griffin SJ, Wareham NJ, Cooper C, Sayer AA. The effects of aerobic exercise on muscle strength and physical performance among community dwelling older people from the Hertfordshire Cohort Study: a randomised controlled trial. J Am Geriatr Soc. (2013)
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