Association between various physical activities and longevity in older people

Association between various physical activities and longevity in older people

In a recently published study in JAMA network opened Researchers examined whether different leisure-time physical activities (LT-PA) were differentially associated with all-cause mortality and the risk of mortality from cancer or cardiovascular disease in older individuals.

Lernen: Association of Leisure Time Physical Activity Types and Risks of All-Cause, Cardiovascular and Cancer Sterblichkeit bei älteren Erwachsenen. Bildquelle: Lordn/Shutterstock

Studies have reported a positive association between increased PA and longevity; However, data on the protective effects of comparable amounts of different PAs (such as cycling and running) on ​​the lifespan of older people need to be further investigated.

In addition, previous studies were conducted in young people and could not accurately assess dose-response relationships (as they were too weak), and therefore the results have limited generalizability to older people.

About studying

In the present study, researchers comparatively assessed mortality risks in older individuals who received different types but comparable amounts of LT-PA. They examined the associated curve shape of the dose-response relationship.

In the NIH (National Institutes of Health) and AARP (American Association of Pensioned Persons) prospective cohort study conducted for baseline data from 1995 to 1996, approximately 3.5 million questionnaires were mailed to AARP members aged 50 to 69 years of age, living in Florida, California, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Louisiana and North Carolina or lived in metropolitan areas such as Atlanta and Detroit. Baseline and follow-up questionnaires were completed by 567,169 and 313,363 individuals, respectively, to assess the association between cancer and diet during the follow-up period between 2004 and 2005.

The present study included 272,550 individuals who completed the NIH-AARP follow-up questionnaires. Data were collected on the duration of different types of PA performed per week, and mortality risks were estimated up to December 31, 2019. Study exposures were weekly metabolic equivalent (MET) hours spent in activities such as cycling, running, swimming, racquet sports, aerobic exercise, hiking and golf.

Follow-up questionnaires were designed to obtain self-reported data on the average amount of time spent weekly in physical activity during the previous year, including running or jogging, cycling, swimming, other aerobic exercise, racquet sports such as squash, racquetball or tennis, golf, and walking. The main outcomes and measures were all-cause mortality, cancer and cardiovascular mortality.

The study excluded 18,493 proxy baseline and follow-up participants, 3,859 participants with extreme or absent BMI (body mass index) values, 7,287 participants with walking impairment, and 11,714 participants who did not respond to >3 of the seven LT-PA assessed in the study. Metabolic equivalents (ME) of task values ​​were assigned to each PA, followed by multiplication by self-reported PA durations to estimate average MET hours/week.

Cox hazards regression modeling was used for the analysis, and hazard ratios (HRs) were calculated with data adjustments for gender, weight, race, height, smoking habits, depression, alcohol consumption, medical history (stroke, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, and emphysema), and education level.

Results

A total of 272,550 respondents were considered for the analysis, most of whom were men, 58%, n=157,415, with a mean age of 71 years. In the study cohort, 43% (n = 118,153) deaths due to cancer (n = 32,666) and cardiovascular disease (n = 38,300) were reported within 12 years of follow-up. The most commonly reported PA was walking (78%), followed by other aerobic exercise, cycling, golf, swimming, running and racquet sports as reported by 30%, 25%, 14%, 10%, 7% and 4% of respondents.

Compared to individuals who did not engage in PA, 7.5 hours to <15 MET hours per week of running and racquet sports were associated with the highest reductions in all-cause mortality risk, with HR values ​​of 0.9 and 0.8, respectively. Mortality risk was also lower for those who engaged in walking, other aerobic exercise, golf, swimming and cycling, with HR values ​​of 0.9, 0.9, 0.95 and 0.97, respectively.

The overall mortality risk was five percent lower (HR 0.95) and 13% (HR 0.9), respectively, in moderately active (0.1 MET hours to <7.5 MET hours weekly) and active (7.5 MET hours to <15 MET hours weekly) individuals compared to physically inactive individuals.

In addition, highly active individuals (≥15 weekly MET hours) had a lower risk of mortality; However, the magnitude of mortality risk reduction associated with higher weekly MET hours was relatively smaller. Notably, mortality risks were lower in individuals reporting very high concentrations (≥22.5 weekly MET-hours) of PA, such as: B. swimming, running, and other aerobic exercise, higher than those who engaged in more than 15 hours but <22.5 hours per week of MET hours of PA.

The risk of mortality from cardiovascular disease and cancer was lower in older people who played racket games (HR 0.7) and ran (HR 0.8), respectively. All PA activities showed a curvilinear dose-response relationship with mortality risk. The reduction in mortality risk from running was zero for women and vice versa for men, with HR values ​​of 1.1 and 0.8, respectively. In contrast, walking was more strongly associated with longevity in women than in men.

Swimming for 7.5 to <15 weekly MET hours was associated with a reduction in mortality risk among participants with BMI values ​​less than 25 (HR 0.9), while the association was zero among those with BMI values ​​between 25 and 29.9 (HR 0.98) and BMI ≥ 30 (HR 1.1). Playing golf was associated with a lower risk of mortality among those with a high school education (HR, 0.9). In contrast, for those who completed college, the association was zero (HR 0.99).

Overall, study results highlighted the protective role of LT-PA against mortality in the elderly, with significant reductions in mortality risk among those who engaged in PA from 7.5 to <15 weekly MET hours.

Reference:

• Eleanor L. Watts et al. (2022). Association of Leisure Time Physical Activity Types and Risks of All-Cause, Cardiovascular and Cancer Sterblichkeit bei älteren Erwachsenen. JAMA-Netzwerk geöffnet. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.28510 https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2795598?utm_source=For_The_Media

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