Physical activity is an effective approach to preventing chronic diseases.1 We and others have also found that physical activity in midlife is related to healthy aging.2-14 In this issue of the Archives, Savela and colleagues report a significant positive association between higher midlife physical activity and greater physical function in older men; activity was not associated with other components of health-related quality of life. A major strength of this study is its long follow-up and detailed measures of quality of life in older age. However, 2 limitations are notable. Assessment of physical activity was limited, with 3 broad categories; thus, measurement errors might have attenuated associations. Second, the sample was relatively small with 552 participants.
In our previous study,14 as Savela et al note, we did not consider individual quality of life components; our interest was in understanding overall successful survival—a clear public health priority. Nonetheless, for comparison, in our data, midlife physical activity was related to the SF-36 mental health index and to physical function (2 components in our definition of successful survival, along with chronic diseases and cognition). Adjusted odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) for the fifth vs first quintile of physical activity were 0.43 (0.38-0.49) (P value for trend, <.001) for physical function and 0.80 (0.72-0.90) (P value for trend, <.001) for mental health. Overall, however, despite relatively low power, the study by Savela et al adds to the growing evidence that greater physical activity in midlife contributes to aspects of healthy aging.
Correspondence: Dr Sun, Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, 665 Huntington Ave, Room 349, Bldg 2, Boston, MA 02115 (qisun@hsph.harvard.edu).
Financial Disclosure: None reported.
Funding/Support: This study was supported by research grants AG13482, AG15424, and CA40356 from the National Institutes of Health and the Pilot and Feasibility program sponsored by the Boston Obesity Nutrition Research Center (DK46200). Dr Sun is supported by a Postdoctoral Fellowship from the Unilever Corporate Research.
1.Department of Health and Human Services, Physical Activity and Health: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, GA National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion1996;
2.Almeida
OPNorman
PHankey
GJamrozik
KFlicker
L Successful mental health aging: results from a longitudinal study of older Australian men.
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry 2006;14
(1)
27- 35
PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref 3.Fiatarone
MAO'Neill
EFRyan
ND
et al. Exercise training and nutritional supplementation for physical frailty in very elderly people.
N Engl J Med 1994;330
(25)
1769- 1775
PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref 4.He
XZBaker
DW Body mass index, physical activity, and the risk of decline in overall health and physical functioning in late middle age.
Am J Public Health 2004;94
(9)
1567- 1573
PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref 5.Laurin
DVerreault
RLindsay
JMacPherson
KRockwood
K Physical activity and risk of cognitive impairment and dementia in elderly persons.
Arch Neurol 2001;58
(3)
498- 504
PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref 6.Leveille
SGGuralnik
JMFerrucci
LLanglois
JA Aging successfully until death in old age: opportunities for increasing active life expectancy.
Am J Epidemiol 1999;149
(7)
654- 664
PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref 7.Newman
ABArnold
AMNaydeck
BL
et al. Cardiovascular Health Study Research Group, “Successful aging”: effect of subclinical cardiovascular disease.
Arch Intern Med 2003;163
(19)
2315- 2322
PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref 8.Strawbridge
WJDeleger
SRoberts
REKaplan
GA Physical activity reduces the risk of subsequent depression for older adults.
Am J Epidemiol 2002;156
(4)
328- 334
PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref 12.Yaffe
KBarnes
DNevitt
MLui
LYCovinsky
K A prospective study of physical activity and cognitive decline in elderly women: women who walk.
Arch Intern Med 2001;161
(14)
1703- 1708
PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref 13.Yates
LBDjousse
LKurth
TBuring
JEGaziano
JM Exceptional longevity in men: modifiable factors associated with survival and function to age 90 years.
Arch Intern Med 2008;168
(3)
284- 290
PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref 14.Sun
QTownsend
MKOkereke
OIFranco
OHHu
FBGrodstein
F Physical activity at midlife in relation to successful survival in women at age 70 years or older.
Arch Intern Med 2010;170
(2)
194- 201
PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref