Scientific Reports (Apr 2024)

Large-scale assessment of physical activity in a population using high-resolution hip-worn accelerometry: the German National Cohort (NAKO)

  • Andrea Weber,
  • Vincent T. van Hees,
  • Michael J. Stein,
  • Sylvia Gastell,
  • Karen Steindorf,
  • Florian Herbolsheimer,
  • Stefan Ostrzinski,
  • Tobias Pischon,
  • Mirko Brandes,
  • Lilian Krist,
  • Michael Marschollek,
  • Karin Halina Greiser,
  • Katharina Nimptsch,
  • Berit Brandes,
  • Carmen Jochem,
  • Anja M. Sedlmeier,
  • Klaus Berger,
  • Hermann Brenner,
  • Christoph Buck,
  • Stefanie Castell,
  • Marcus Dörr,
  • Carina Emmel,
  • Beate Fischer,
  • Claudia Flexeder,
  • Volker Harth,
  • Antje Hebestreit,
  • Jana-Kristin Heise,
  • Bernd Holleczek,
  • Thomas Keil,
  • Lena Koch-Gallenkamp,
  • Wolfgang Lieb,
  • Claudia Meinke-Franze,
  • Karin B. Michels,
  • Rafael Mikolajczyk,
  • Alexander Kluttig,
  • Nadia Obi,
  • Annette Peters,
  • Börge Schmidt,
  • Sabine Schipf,
  • Matthias B. Schulze,
  • Henning Teismann,
  • Sabina Waniek,
  • Stefan N. Willich,
  • Michael F. Leitzmann,
  • Hansjörg Baurecht

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-58461-5
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 14, no. 1
pp. 1 – 13

Abstract

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Abstract Large population-based cohort studies utilizing device-based measures of physical activity are crucial to close important research gaps regarding the potential protective effects of physical activity on chronic diseases. The present study details the quality control processes and the derivation of physical activity metrics from 100 Hz accelerometer data collected in the German National Cohort (NAKO). During the 2014 to 2019 baseline assessment, a subsample of NAKO participants wore a triaxial ActiGraph accelerometer on their right hip for seven consecutive days. Auto-calibration, signal feature calculations including Euclidean Norm Minus One (ENMO) and Mean Amplitude Deviation (MAD), identification of non-wear time, and imputation, were conducted using the R package GGIR version 2.10-3. A total of 73,334 participants contributed data for accelerometry analysis, of whom 63,236 provided valid data. The average ENMO was 11.7 ± 3.7 mg (milli gravitational acceleration) and the average MAD was 19.9 ± 6.1 mg. Notably, acceleration summary metrics were higher in men than women and diminished with increasing age. Work generated in the present study will facilitate harmonized analysis, reproducibility, and utilization of NAKO accelerometry data. The NAKO accelerometry dataset represents a valuable asset for physical activity research and will be accessible through a specified application process.