Is the number of daily walking steps in sedentary workers affected by age, gender, body mass index, education, and overall energy expenditure?

BACKGROUND: Healthy adults should take 10,000 steps per day to gain the resulting health benefits. Knowledge regarding the individual characteristics associated with daily walking steps would enhance resource allocation to those most likely to benefit from the 10,000-steps-per-day campaign. OBJECTIVE: To determine the extent to which age, gender, body mass index (BMI), education, and energy expenditure influence daily walking steps in white-collar workers and to assess the correlation of daily walking steps among pedometer, wristband activity tracker, and smartphone application. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 49 sedentary workers. Daily walking steps were simultaneously assessed by three activity trackers in free-living conditions for 7 consecutive days. Associations between daily walking steps and individual factors were examined using linear regression. Correlation tests were conducted to assess the association among the three devices. RESULTS: Multiple regression analyses showed that BMI was associated with daily walking steps. A moderate to good correlation in daily walking steps was found between the wristband activity tracker and pedometer, as well as between the smartphone application and pedometer. CONCLUSIONS: BMI influenced daily walking steps in white-collar workers. Daily walking steps assessed by the wristband activity tracker and smartphone application differed from those assessed by the pedometer.