August/September 2013 (vol. 10/2)

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Pedometers

There is insufficient evidence that workplace health promotion programmes that include workers being given pedometers to encourage walking are effective in either increasing physical activity or improving health risk factors, this Cochrane systematic review finds. The four randomised controlled studies provided data for more than 1,800 employees, with the interventions lasting between four and six months; outcomes were measured immediately at the end of the trial. They showed inconsistent results for physical activity – just one study found an improvement – and, while there were improvements in secondary measures such as BMI, waste circumference and plasma glucose, the data were limited. Lack of randomisation was the chief reason for excluding 161 papers from the review.

Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2013; 4: CD009209. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD009209.pub2

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Occupational Health at Work August/September 2013 (vol. 10/2) pp40