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By Susan R. Farrer Older adults spend much of their time engaged in sedentary activities
like talking on the telephone and reading, but programs to promote
physical activity can help them get moving, according to new research.
The study asked older people how they use their discretionary time and assessed how two programs affected the time they spend being physically active. The first group of subjects included 103 sedentary women and men age 65 and older. For one year, each person received regular telephone calls from a health educator who encouraged participation in a specially designed YMCA and home-based exercise program. The second group included 93 postmenopausal women who first met in person with a health educator and then received regular telephone counseling for one year. The women were counseled to set goals and engage in either an individualized exercise program or an individualized nutrition education program that also encouraged physical activity. “Older adults in these studies participated in numerous social and recreational activities. However, most activities were sedentary in nature,” note the researchers, Rebecca E. Lee, Ph.D., of the University of Kansas School of Medicine and Abby C. King, Ph.D., of the Stanford University School of Medicine. Their findings are published in the April issue of the Annals of Behavioral Medicine. As expected, the women and men differed in how they spent their discretionary time. Women were more likely than men to do housework, volunteer and engage in social activities such as playing cards and attending club meetings. Men were more likely to watch TV, listen to the radio and do desk work. During the 12-month study, the older adults increased the amount of time they spent doing physical activities recommended by the intervention programs. The amount of time spent on physical activities not targeted by the programs remained unchanged, however. The women in the second part of the study who enrolled in the exercise-focused program were far more likely than those enrolled in the nutrition-focused program to expand their physical activity. “As the older adult population continues to grow in the United States and worldwide, it will be important to expand choices that encourage more physical activities and develop ways to link physical activities to popular sedentary activities,” the researchers write. For example, they suggest, older adults might be encouraged to walk while talking with a friend or read while riding a stationary bicycle. The authors report that approximately 40 percent of the U.S. population is mostly sedentary and that many others do not do enough physical activity to reap health benefits. The research was supported by the National Institute on Aging and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Copyright
© 2002 Global Action on Aging
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