Physical Activity of Older People as Education and Intervention Activity

The World Health Organization has developed the Integrated Care of Older People (ICOPE) strategy, a program based on the measurement of intrinsic capacity (IC) as “the composite of all physical and mental attributes on which an individual can draw”. Multicomponent interventions appear to be the most effective approach to enhance IC and to prevent frailty and disability since adapted physical activity is the preventive intervention that has shown the most evidence in the treatment of frailty and risk of falls. Our paper describes the development of a multi-domain group-based intervention addressed to older people living in the community, aimed at improving and/or maintaining intrinsic capacity by means of promoting physical activity, healthy nutrition, and psychological wellbeing in older people. The process of intervention development is described following the Guidance for reporting intervention development studies in health research (GUIDED). The result of this study is the AMICOPE intervention (Aptitude Multi-domain group-based intervention to improve and/or maintain IC in Older PEople) built upon the ICOPE framework and described following the Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR) guidelines. The intervention consists of 12 face-to-face sessions held weekly for 2.5 h over three months and facilitated by a pair of health and social care professionals. This study represents the first stage of the UK Medical Research Council framework for developing and evaluating a complex intervention. The next step should be carrying out a feasibility study for the AMICOPE intervention and, at a later stage, assessing the effectiveness in a randomized controlled trial.

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Physical Activity, Ability to Walk, Weight Status, and Multimorbidity Levels in Older Spanish People: The National Health Survey (2009–2017)

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph17124333 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (12) ◽

pp. 4333

Author(s):

Pedro Ángel Latorre-Román ◽

Juan Manuel Carmona-Torres ◽

Ana Isabel Cobo-Cuenca ◽

José Alberto Laredo-Aguilera

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Health Status ◽

Older People ◽

National Health ◽

Health Survey ◽

Weight Status ◽

Perceived Health ◽

National Health Survey ◽

Severe Difficulty ◽

Chronic Health Problems

Background. Many studies have shown a relationship between physical functioning and health status in older people. Aim. The purpose of this study was to analyze the temporal trends of physical activity (PA), ability to walk, weight status, self-perceived health, and disease or chronic health problems in people over 65 years from 2009 to 2017, using the European Health Survey in Spain and the National Health Survey in Spain. Methods. This study included 13,049 older people: 6026 (2330 men and 3696 women; age (mean, SD (Standard Deviation)) = 75.61 ± 7.11 years old) in 2009 and 7023 (2850 men and 4173 women; age (mean, SD) = 76.01 ± 7.57 years old) in 2017. Results. In 2017, older people exhibited lower values of moderate PA (p < 0.001), a lower number of hours of walking per week (p < 0.001), and worse self-perceived health status (p < 0.001) compared to 2009. These differences are maintained when comparing the sexes. Compliance with PA recommendations was 27.9% and 6.1% (chi-squared = 352.991, p < 0.001) in 2009 and 2017, respectively. There were no significant differences in weight status between older people in 2009 and 2017. In 2017, older people had significantly high percentages of disease or chronic health problems (p < 0.05), number of diseases (p < 0.001), severe difficulty walking 500 m without assistance (p < 0.05), and severe difficulty going up or down 12 stairs. Conclusions. From 2009 to 2017, Spanish older people worsened their PA levels and perception of their health status, and they increased their disease levels, which could be associated with the worsening of ability to walk in 2017.

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The Active Aging Agenda, Old Folk Devils and a New Moral Panic

Sociology of Sport Journal ◽

10.1123/ssj.28.2.209 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 28 (2) ◽

pp. 209-225 ◽

Cited By ~ 51

Author(s):

Elizabeth C.J. Pike

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Older People ◽

Older Persons ◽

Later Life ◽

Conclusive Evidence ◽

Social Benefits ◽

Active Aging ◽

Moral Panics ◽

International Policy ◽

Policy Agendas

The proposal that older people should engage in “active aging” has come to dominate local, national, and international policy agendas. This encompasses a variety of ways that older persons might maintain active citizenship, but invariably promotes physical activity and exercise as having health and social benefits, despite a lack of conclusive evidence to support such claims. In this paper, I further examine the meaning of these claims through an analysis of policy documents, reports, and media articles which promote the perceived benefits of physical activity in later life. I revisit Cohen’s (2002) concepts of folk devils and moral panics to understand how these messages simultaneously problematize older people while creating a market for emergent moral entrepreneurs who claim to have the solution to the problem they have in part created. I conclude with recommendations for improved understanding of the benefits and appropriate provision for active aging.

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Strategies Older New Zealanders Use to Participate in Day-To-Day Occupations

British Journal of Occupational Therapy ◽

10.4276/030802211x13204135680820 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 74 (11) ◽

pp. 509-516 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Clare Hocking ◽

Juanita Murphy ◽

Kirk Reed

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Physical Activity ◽

Older Adults ◽

New Zealand ◽

Older People ◽

Exploratory Study ◽

Occupational Therapists ◽

Falls Prevention ◽

Public Health Messages ◽

The Impact

Aim: This exploratory study aimed to uncover the strategies that older adults employ to ameliorate the impact of impairments and barriers to participation. Method: Eight participants were interviewed in their own homes, in a town or city in New Zealand. Findings: Inductive analysis of data revealed four main categories of strategies: strategies to keep safe, to recruit and accept help, to meet social and biological needs (nutritional and medical), and to conserve financial, material and bodily resources. Discussion: The study supports some previous findings of strategies used by older people, and demonstrates that enquiring into the strategies that older people devise and adopt into their own lives is a productive line of inquiry. The strategies described differ from those that occupational therapists recommend, and do not incorporate public health messages about the benefits of physical activity or recommendations about falls prevention. Conclusion: The findings suggest that asking older clients about the strategies that they use will uncover valuable information for therapists giving advice or issuing equipment to help older adults to manage in the community.

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