Factors Mediating or Moderating the Effects of Obesity on Walking: Targeting Areas for Rehabilitation

Abstract

Increased physical activity, such as walking, is often prescribed to address obesity. Several factors that may influence the connection between obesity and walking include the biomechanics of gait, pain, depressive symptoms, physical health, and activity. The objective of this study was to assess the moderation and mediation effects of knee pain and buckling, depressive symptoms, physical activity, and physical health on spatiotemporal gait parameters in individuals with obesity. Forty participants with obesity performed a task in which they walked on flat ground and crossed an obstacle. Measures of knee pain and buckling, depressive symptoms, physical activity, and physical health were collected. We conducted mediation analyses with knee buckling and pain as mediators of the effect of the BMI on spatiotemporal gait parameters. Moderation analyses were performed with depressive symptoms, physical activity, and physical health as moderators of the effect of BMI on spatiotemporal gait parameters. We found that depressive symptoms and physical health moderated the relationship between BMI and Step Width in people with obesity. These effects were pronounced when participants crossed an obstacle. In conclusion, depressed mood and physical health influence the relationship between obesity and walking. These factors present potential avenues for rehabilitation interventions to aid individuals with obesity.

Keywords:

• obesity
• gait
• depression
• physical activity

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Dr. Howard Cabral for his statistical expertise and Boston Medical Center for recruitment assistance.

Acknowledgment of Presentation: This work was presented as a poster at the 2021 North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity (NASPSPA) Virtual Conference.

Acknowledgment of Financial Support: This research was supported in part by NIH grants K12HD055931 and R03AR066344-01A1 to Simone V. Gill.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported in part by NIH grants K12HD055931 and R03AR066344-01A1 to Simone V. Gill.