New Study Finds Fitness Levels Clearly Decline with
Age, a Lot Faster After Passing 45
Exercising, maintaining healthy weight, not smoking
associated with better cardiovascular health throughout life
Oct.
26, 2009 - New research confirms that men and women gradually become
less fit as they age, with declines accelerating after age 45. But, the
report in the October 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine,
one of the JAMA/Archives journals, says maintaining a healthy body mass
index (BMI), not smoking and being physically active can lead to higher
fitness levels throughout adult life.
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Senior Citizen Exercise & Fitness |
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"The U.S. population is aging and is becoming more
obese and sedentary," the authors write as background information in the
article.
"It is well documented that the cardiorespiratory
fitness of men and women declines with age and that body composition and
habitual physical activity are related to cardiorespiratory fitness."
Low fitness levels increase the risk of diseases
and interfere with older adults' ability to function independently.
Andrew S. Jackson, P.E.D., of the University of
Houston, and colleagues studied 3,429 women and 16,889 men age 20 to 96
who participated in the Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study (ACLS)
between 1974 and 2006.
During the study, participants completed between
two and 33 health examinations that included counseling about diet,
exercise and other lifestyle factors along with a treadmill exercise to
assess fitness.
Statistical models showed that while fitness levels
declined continuously over time, the decrease was not linear or steady -
cardiorespiratory fitness declined more rapidly after age 45.
The decline for men was greater than that for
women.
The results also "showed that being active, keeping
a normal BMI and not smoking were associated with substantially higher
levels of cardiorespiratory fitness during the adult life span studied,"
the authors write.
"Being inactive and having a high BMI were
associated with a lower age at which an individual could be expected to
reach threshold cardiorespiratory fitness levels associated with
substantially higher health risks."
Given the high rates of obesity and low levels of
physical activity previously observed in the general population, the
results also suggest that more men and women will reach the fitness
level designated by the Social Security Administration as representing
disability at a younger age, the authors note.
"These data indicate the need for physicians to
recommend to their patients the necessity to maintain their weight,
engage in regular aerobic exercise and abstain from smoking," they
conclude.
Editor's Note: The ACLS was supported by grants
from the National Institutes of Health.
