Cohort Profile: The Nijmegen Exercise Study (NES)

Key Features The Nijmegen Exercise Study (NES) provides a longitudinal collection of data on lifestyle characteristics and the development and progression of chronic diseases.The NES is a population-based cohort enriched with highly physically active individuals.The cohort contains individuals both with and without chronic diseases, with physical activity levels ranging from inactive to extremely active. Baseline data collection is ongoing.Since 2011, baseline data have been collected in 23 643 participants with a mean age of 48.7 years (range: 18-94) of whom 46.0% are female.Annual follow-up data have been collected in 11 484 participants (48.6%) with a median follow-up duration of 8.0 (5.0, 10.9) years.Additional, centre-based evaluation is ongoing and has so far been performed in a subset of 1743 participants. Baseline and follow-up questionnaires provide trends in demographics, socioeconomic status, lifestyle characteristics, medical history, medication use, and historical and current physical activity and sedentary behaviour.Centre-based evaluation includes anthropometrics, blood pressure, arterial stiffness, carotid artery characteristics, venous blood biomarkers, accelerometer-based physical activity patterns, handgrip strength, and 4-metre gait speed.