PURPOSE: To assess health-related quality of life (HRQL) in relation to walking habits and fitness status in older persons. A second aim was to examine fitness status as a mediator in the relation between walking habits and HRQL. METHODS: A cross-sectional population-based sample of 75-year-olds from Gothenburg, Sweden, was examined (n = 698, response rate 61 %). Walking habits were assessed as weekly frequency and duration. HRQL was assessed with the Short Form-36 (SF-36) and fitness with maximal and self-selected gait speed, chair-stand, stair-climbing capacity, grip strength and one-leg stance. RESULTS: The proportion of 75-year-olds who attained recommended levels of moderate physical activity (≥ 150 min/week), described as walking, was 60 %. This was positively associated with most subscales of SF-36 and with all fitness tests except grip strength. Maximal gait speed was the fitness test with the highest correlations to all SF-36 subscales. Fitness, described with maximal gait speed, was a partial mediator in most relations between walking habits and SF-36. After adjustment for confounders, associations between regular walking and SF-36 were no longer significant, except for Role Physical, General Health and Role Emotional in women. CONCLUSIONS: Attaining recommended levels of walking, as well as a high fitness status, is positively associated with several aspects of HRQL in older persons. Fitness, described with maximal gait speed, seems to have a partial role in the relation between walking habits and HRQL, suggesting that other mechanisms are also involved.
PURPOSE: To assess health-related quality of life (HRQL) in relation to walking habits and fitness status in older persons. A second aim was to examine fitness status as a mediator in the relation between walking habits and HRQL. METHODS: A cross-sectional population-based sample of 75-year-olds from Gothenburg, Sweden, was examined (n = 698, response rate 61 %). Walking habits were assessed as weekly frequency and duration. HRQL was assessed with the Short Form-36 (SF-36) and fitness with maximal and self-selected gait speed, chair-stand, stair-climbing capacity, grip strength and one-leg stance. RESULTS: The proportion of 75-year-olds who attained recommended levels of moderate physical activity (≥ 150 min/week), described as walking, was 60 %. This was positively associated with most subscales of SF-36 and with all fitness tests except grip strength. Maximal gait speed was the fitness test with the highest correlations to all SF-36 subscales. Fitness, described with maximal gait speed, was a partial mediator in most relations between walking habits and SF-36. After adjustment for confounders, associations between regular walking and SF-36 were no longer significant, except for Role Physical, General Health and Role Emotional in women. CONCLUSIONS: Attaining recommended levels of walking, as well as a high fitness status, is positively associated with several aspects of HRQL in older persons. Fitness, described with maximal gait speed, seems to have a partial role in the relation between walking habits and HRQL, suggesting that other mechanisms are also involved.
Authors: Avan Aihie Sayer; Holly E Syddall; Helen J Martin; Elaine M Dennison; Helen C Roberts; Cyrus Cooper Journal: Age Ageing Date: 2006-05-11 Impact factor: 10.668
Authors: Carol Ewing Garber; Mary L Greaney; Deborah Riebe; Claudio R Nigg; Patricia A Burbank; Phillip G Clark Journal: BMC Geriatr Date: 2010-02-03 Impact factor: 3.921
Authors: G Abellan van Kan; Y Rolland; S Andrieu; J Bauer; O Beauchet; M Bonnefoy; M Cesari; L M Donini; S Gillette Guyonnet; M Inzitari; F Nourhashemi; G Onder; P Ritz; A Salva; M Visser; B Vellas Journal: J Nutr Health Aging Date: 2009-12 Impact factor: 4.075
Authors: Kristine M Erlandson; Amanda A Allshouse; Catherine M Jankowski; Samantha Mawhinney; Wendy M Kohrt; Thomas B Campbell Journal: AIDS Date: 2014-08-24 Impact factor: 4.177
Authors: Rachel Cooper; Mai Stafford; Rebecca Hardy; Avan Aihie Sayer; Yoav Ben-Shlomo; Cyrus Cooper; Leone Craig; Ian J Deary; John Gallacher; Geraldine McNeill; John M Starr; Diana Kuh; Catharine R Gale Journal: Age (Dordr) Date: 2013-07-02
Authors: Mattia Roppolo; E Saskia Kunnen; Paul L van Geert; Anna Mulasso; Emanuela Rabaglietti Journal: Clin Interv Aging Date: 2015-10-29 Impact factor: 4.458