The Effectiveness of Consumer Wearable Activity Trackers to Reduce Sedentary Behaviour and Improve Health-related Outcomes in Sedentary Adults

Chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs), including cardiovascular diseases, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases and diabetes, are an important public health concern worldwide. Physical inactivity is one of the major contributing factors which is highly correlated with the prevalence of NCDs. On the other hand, it is well known that increased physical activity has significant health benefits and is associated with the prevention and delayed onset of many NCDs. Given the important role of physical activity in the prevention and management of NCDs it is thus important to promote physical activity. Hence, to date a multitude of physical activity recommendations and many supervised training interventions and rehabilitation programs are available to encourage physical activity in the global population. Despite this, a recent report from the World Health Organization (WHO) indicates that 23% of the adult and 80% of the adolescent population remains physically inactive. Here, long-term compliance to adequate physical activity and a healthy life style appears to be one of the main barriers explaining this discrepancy. Consequently, any strategy that improves long term adherence to adequate daily physical activity and a healthy life style, especially in an NCD population, is worthwhile investigating. In this respect and following the recent use of accelerometer-based remote monitoring of physical activity in chronic disease patients, consumer wearable activity trackers may be such a strategy. So far, consumer wearable activity trackers have been investigated mainly in the sports community. Here CWATs are used for self-monitoring and providing continuous sport performance and health related information to athletes and coaches. Interestingly, the self-management, motivational and goal setting properties of these commercially available devices may also help patients with NCDs to engage in long-term physical activity under free-living conditions in a home-based setting. Despite the widespread use of these wearables their feasibility and effectiveness on physical activity (compliance) and generic health-related outcomes, including weight, body mass index (BMI), systemic blood pressure and glycemic index, especially in patients with NCDs is not fully clear.

Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of CWATs to promote physical activity levels and cardiometabolic health in sedentary adults. A better understanding to what extent CWATs can actually improve physical activity (compliance) and health outcomes is important to increase the effectiveness and quality of health care in chronic disease populations.