Physical activity and work capacity among

fly-in fly-out workers in the Arctic region

Akimov A.M., Novoselov A.V., Lebedev E. V., Gafarov V.V.,

Bessonova M.I., Akimova E.V.

Objective. The aim of this study was to examine the specific features of physical activity and work capacity among flyin fly-out workers in the Arctic region, aged 25–54 years.

Methods. The study sample consisted of a random representative selection of male workers aged 25–54, employed on a fly-in fly-out basis by the EURACORE industrial enterprise in the Arctic latitudes of the Tyumen region. Initially, 750 men aged 25–54 were recruited, with a response

rate of 82.4 %. The final sample included 618 men, divided into age groups: 25–34 years. (n=214), 35–44 years (n=206), and 45–54 years (n=198). Pearson’s chi-squared test was used to assess the significance of differences between sample proportions in the two groups. When absolute frequencies were less than 5, Fisher’s exact test was applied.

Results. Men aged 45–54 years reported no change in their physical activity significantly more often than men from 25–34 y.o. (85.3–67.7 %, p<0.001) and 35–44 y.o. (85.3 — 84.4 %, p <0.001) age groups, as well as the total sample (85.3–79.0 %, p<0.001).Concurrently, the

youngest group (25–34 years) had the highest proportion of men with low physical activity compared to the 35–44 age group (18.7 % vs. 4.4 %, p<0.001), the 45–54 age group (18.7 % vs. 6.6 %, p<0.001), and the total sample (18.7 % vs. 10.0 %, p<0.001).

In the 25–34 age group, work capacity had increased over the past 12 months more often than in the 45–54 age group (14.5 % vs. 6.1 %, p=0.0052). No change in work capacity was reported more frequently in the 45–54 group compared to the 25–34 group (85.8 % vs. 73.4 %, p=0.0017).

A significant decrease in work capacity was also observed in the youngest group compared to the overall sample average (8.0 % vs. 3.1 %, p=0.0011).

Conclusion. Thus, less than one-fifth of the fly-in fly-out workers surveyed engaged in regular physical exercise, while more than one-fifth held the opposite stance on this matter. Less than a quarter of shift workers spent their leisure time passively. More than a quarter of the men

rated their physical activity as significantly higher than that of their peers. Over the past year, age-related trends were identified to show not only a decrease in physical activity but also an increase in work capacity during the third decade of life.

Keywords: organized population, work capacity, physical activity, men, fly-in fly-out work, Arctic.

For citation: Akimov A.M., Novoselov A.V., Lebedev E.V. et al. Physical activity and work performance among fly-in fly-out workers in the Arctic region. International Journal of Heart and Vascular Diseases. 2025. 13(48): 10-15. DOI: 10.24412/2311-1623-2025-47-13-20