Exercise Improves Life in the Elderly

Nov. 18, 2002 (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Study after study points to the health benefits of exercise. Now, a new study shows older people who engage in aerobic activities are less likely to develop disabilities and have lower mortality rates.

Researchers from Stanford University School of Medicine studied 370 members of a runners club, all of whom were 50 and older, and 249 community members, ages 50 to 72, who did not belong to a running club.

After the 13-year follow-up, researchers found significantly less disability among the members of the runners club and community members who ran on their own compared to community members who never ran. Researchers also found a much slower rate of progression to various levels of disability among the runners, signaling a delay in disability for several years. Community participants had more than three times the rate of death than runners club participants, with higher death rates in every disease category.

Authors of the study write, this study "...Suggests that in individuals with healthy lifestyles, disability can be postponed until a few years before death, when it develops at an increasing rate." The authors add, "The postponement of disability seen herein, even to minimum levels of impairment, is significant and compels us to consider the role of exercise in the elderly population as an important element of a disability-free life."

Previous studies show aerobic exercise may increase longevity by increasing muscle strength, cardiovascular reserve, bone mineral density, and glucose tolerance.