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Among many general health-related concerns, some patients with schizophrenia complain of muscle weakness and have reduced aerobic capacity. Investigators in Belgium compared muscle fitness, walking-distance capacity, and related health factors in 80 non–substance-abusing patients with schizophrenia and 40 healthy controls matched for age, sex, and body-mass index (BMI). Participants (mean age, 37) had no major cardiovascular, locomotor, or endocrine disorders.
Patients smoked more than controls (mean, 14.8 vs. 3.8 cigarettes/day). Walking capacity (measured via a standardized 6-minute walk test) and health-related fitness (measured with a standing broad jump) were significantly worse in patients than controls (differences of 18% and 14%, res…