This Article  • Full text  • PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Related articles  • Similar articles in JAMA  Topic Collections  • Exercise  • Statistics and Research Methods  • Alert me on articles by topic

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

To the Editor: The article by Dr Shishehbor and colleagues¹ demonstrated that impaired functional capacity and abnormal heart rate recovery following exercise testing accounted for a major proportion of the association between socioeconomic status (SES) and all-cause mortality. The SES gradient in certain health-related behaviors such as smoking and diet are well established, although less so for physical activity. Thus, these data highlight an important aspect of public health research that is often neglected.

Maintenance of higher physical function in early old age appears to be dependent on participation in a physically active lifestyle during midlife,² and it is increasingly common for trials to include exercise for prevention of chronic diseases.³ However, there is a critical problem related to the association between physical activity and SES. Some of the disparities in physical activity levels among SES groups may be due to fewer possibilities for safe outdoor exercise and less disposable . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Mark Hamer, PhD
m.hamer@ucl.ac.uk
Department of Epidemiology and Public Health
University College London
London, England

RELATED ARTICLES

Mediators of the Association Between Mortality Risk and Socioeconomic Status
Daniel J. Brotman
JAMA. 2006;296(7):763-764.
EXTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Mediators of the Association Between Mortality Risk and Socioeconomic Status—Reply
Mehdi H. Shishehbor, David Litaker, and Michael S. Lauer
JAMA. 2006;296(7):764.
EXTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Association of Socioeconomic Status With Functional Capacity, Heart Rate Recovery, and All-Cause Mortality
Mehdi H. Shishehbor, David Litaker, Claire E. Pothier, and Michael S. Lauer
JAMA. 2006;295(7):784-792.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Prediction of First Events of Coronary Heart Disease and Stroke With Consideration of Adiposity
Wilson et al.
Circulation 2008;118:124-130.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT