ASPO Abstracts
Correlates of poor adherence to a healthy lifestyle among a diverse sample of colorectal cancer survivors in New Mexico
Category: Survivorship & Health Outcomes/Comparative Effectiveness Research
Conference Year: 2019
Abstract Body:
PURPOSE: Lifestyle factors tend to cluster in individuals and may have a synergistic effect on health. We evaluated the correlates of poor adherence to a healthy lifestyle among a diverse sample of colorectal cancer (CRC) survivors in New Mexico to inform future lifestyle promotion programs.METHODS: Lifestyle questions from a cross-sectional survey were completed by 283 CRC survivors (41% Hispanic, 40% rural; 33% low income). Adherence to recommendations (yes/no) for physical activity, fruit and vegetable servings/day, avoiding tobacco use, and healthy weight were summed to create a lifestyle score. Polytomous logistic regression was used to evaluate correlates of good (reference group), moderate, and poor adherence to healthy lifestyle recommendations. Potential correlates included sociodemographic characteristics, cancer-related factors, and indicators of health and well-being.RESULTS: Among CRC survivors, 50%, 29%, and 21% had good, moderate, and poor adherence to a healthy lifestyle. In bivariate analyses, survivors with moderate adherence were significantly more likely to report poor physical functioning compared to the reference group. Survivors with poor adherence were 2- to 3.4-fold significantly more likely to live in a rural area, report two or more comorbidities, poor physical functioning, fatigue, anxiety or depressive symptoms, and poor social participation. In multivariate analyses, poor physical functioning was the only significant correlate of moderate or poor adherence to lifestyle recommendations, compared to good adherence (OR [95% CI] = 1.8 [1.03-3.3] and 3.4 [1.8-6.4], respectively). Among survivors with poor adherence, 71% and 78% indicated interest in receiving information on exercise and eating a healthy diet, respectively. Significant correlates included time since diagnosis (information on exercise), and fatigue, or anxiety or depressive symptoms (information on a healthy diet).CONCLUSION: In a diverse sample of CRC survivors, the strongest correlates of poor adherence to a healthy lifestyle were indicators of poor health and well-being, especially poor physical functioning. Future lifestyle promotion programs should carefully consider these factors in the design, recruitment, and implementation of these health programs.
Keywords: cancer survivors, lifestyle behaviors