Physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption, body mass index, and plasma lipid profiles of military reserve officers.

We assessed the physical activity level, smoking habits, alcohol consumption, ponderosity, and plasma lipid profiles of 688 middle-aged male reserve officers. When adjusting for Body Mass Index (BMI), individuals who reported physical activity of three or more times per week had significantly higher levels of high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), lower total cholesterol (TC) to HDL-C, and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) to HDL-C ratios than inactive individuals of similar age and body weight. Triglyceride, TC, and LDL-C concentrations were similar in both active and inactive subjects.