Sport Involvement Among Middle-Aged and Older Adults With Arthritis: Motivations and Constraints to Participation

Although participation in physical activity is recommended for adults with arthritis, research indicates individuals often stop participating in sports and physically active leisure due to the pain and symptoms associated with arthritis (Wilcox et al., 2006). Examining a group of older adults with arthritis, the present study examines motivations and constraints related to participating in sport and physically active leisure as well as how they negotiate constraints. Data (N=1203) were collected through an online questionnaire of adults aged 50 and older in the United States. This study includes individuals reporting a diagnosis of some form of arthritis (n=288; M age = 64.8, SD = 8.08). Approximately 32% self-reported participation in sport in the past 12 months. Descriptive statistics were conducted to explore motivations and constraints to sport involvement. Regressions were run to determine whether constraints and motivations explained adults’ functional mobility and social wellbeing. The most commonly identified motivation for participation was for health purposes (80.2%). Constraints to participation included not being in good enough shape (51.9%) and not having others their age with whom to participate (47.4%). The most commonly identified constraint negotiation was to budget money (51.4%); this is not surprising since sport participation was perceived as expensive (41.3%). Motivations (p<.01) and constraints (p<.001) significantly predicted functional mobility; constraints significantly predicted some aspects of social wellbeing (i.e., coherence, contribution, actualization; p<.05) while constraint negotiation predicted social acceptance (p<.05) and integration (p<.001). Discussion will include implications and strategies for agencies and professionals who work with adults who have arthritis.

Experienced Subjective Well-Being During Physically Active and Passive Leisure Time Activities Among Adults Aged 65 Years and Older

Background and Objectives The encore years, or later life stages when adults enjoy health and free time, are the prime opportunity for leisure to maximize the overall quality of life. Physically active leisure is widely known to be linked to overall subjective well-being (SWB). However, experienced SWB or momentary emotion during active leisure as well as passive leisure has yet to be examined. Research Design and Methods Data were derived from the 2012/2013 American Time Use Survey Well-being modules. Propensity score matching (PSM) was used to identify comparable matched samples of older adults. Results The PSM identified 211 older adults who reported a series of emotions (i.e., happy, meaningful, tired, sad, stressed, pain) during active leisure, and the comparable counterpart (n = 211) during passive leisure. Results from the Wilcoxon Rank Sum tests showed that active leisure was associated with greater levels of experienced happiness and meaningfulness, as well as with lower levels of sadness (p < .05). Discussion and Implications Physically active leisure is linked to greater levels of experienced SWB among older adults. Although more detailed roles of active and passive leisure for experienced SWB are yet to be verified, choices that older adults make in their free time may significantly impact their experienced SWB and, in turn, their overall quality of life. Aging and public health policies should enhance accessibility to active leisure to promote older adults’ SWB.

Assessment of nutrition and physical activity of 6th-7th grade schoolchildren in the city of Vilnius, Lithuania

Background: Evaluation of eating habits and physical activity is very important for health interventions. Our aim in this study was to assess the characteristics of eating and physical activity of 6-7th grade schoolchildren in the city of Vilnius, Lithuania, as well as the association between dietary habits and physical activity. Methods: The study was conducted within the project “Education of healthy diets and physical activity in schools”. The sample consisted of 1008 schoolchildren from 22 schools in the city of Vilnius, and was based on empirical methods, including a questionnaire poll and comparative analysis. Statistical software Stata v.12.1 (Stata corp LP) was used to analyze the data. Results: Our study showed that less than half (37.1%) of study participants had physically active leisure time. Boys were significantly more physically active than girls. More than half (61.4%) of children ate breakfast every day. Girls were more likely to eat vegetables and sweets. Schoolchildren who ate vegetables and dairy products as well as those who got enough information about physical activity and spoke about it with their family members were more physically active. Conclusions: The results of the study confirmed that schoolchildren were not sufficiently physically active. It was found that low physical activity is related to dietary and other factors, such as lack of information about physical activity and its benefits.