Physical activity, quality of life, and physical fitness of police officers: An exploratory study

Background: A high level of physical activity (PAL) is necessary for the safety performance of police officers. Objective: To evaluate the PAL, quality of life (QoL), and cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) of Civil Police Officers (PO) of Brazil, in association with gender and career time. Methods: We evaluated 55 PO (50.9% male), with a median age of 40 and a BMI of 25.7 kg/m(2). Descriptive analysis and associations with gender and career time (G1: longer/G2: shorter) were carried out. PAL was evaluated by the IPAQ-short version. QoL and CRF were estimated using the WHOQOL and Jackson questionnaires. The chi-square test was used for associations; the odds ratio was calculated with a 95% confidence interval (95%CI) to express the strength of the association. Results: There was a proportion of 72.7% (95% CI:69.0-91.0%) of active PO, with a trend for a higher proportion among women and G2 (p = 0.07/0.08), respectively. Only 36.4% of PO (95% CI:24.0-49.0) achieved the minimum CRF required for career entry, with G1 showing a lower proportion than G2 (p < 0.01) and a lower chance of achieving the recommended CRF (OR: 0.03 / 95% CI:0.01-0.17). The median QoL was >70 points in three of the four evaluated domains, with G2 showing higher scores than G1 in the physical domain (p = 0.02). Conclusion: More than two-thirds of the PO assessed achieved the PA recommendations for health, but the majority had a CRF below the recommended. The median QoL was good in 3 of the four WHOQOL domains. Women and those with less carrier time had higher QoL, PAL, and CRF.