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All Physical Activity Tied to Reduced Mortality in Older Men

Similarly beneficial effect for accumulation of activity in bouts of ≥10 minutes, sporadic minutes

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 21, 2018 (HealthDay News) — All activities (of light intensity upward) are beneficial for older men, with no additional benefit for accumulation of activity in bouts ≥10 minutes beyond total volume of activity, according to a study published online Feb. 19 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

Barbara J. Jefferis, Ph.D., from University College London, and colleagues conducted a prospective population-based cohort study involving men recruited from 24 U.K. general practices from 1978 to 1980. A total of 3,137 surviving men were invited to a follow-up from 2010 to 2012; 1,655 (aged 71 to 92 years) agreed. Participants completed health and demographic questionnaires, underwent height and weight measurements, and wore an ActiGraph GT3x accelerometer.

The researchers identified 194 deaths in 1,181 men without pre-existing cardiovascular disease after a median follow-up of five years. The hazard ratios for mortality were 1.17 for each additional 30 minutes in sedentary behavior and 0.83 and 0.9 for each additional 30 minutes in light physical activity (LIPA) and 10 minutes in moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA), respectively. These estimates persisted with adjustment for confounders. On mutual adjustment for all intensities, only LIPA remained significant. The hazard ratios were 0.59 and 0.58 for accumulating 150 minutes MVPA/week in sporadic minutes and for accumulating 150 minutes MVPA/week in bouts lasting ≥10 minutes (achieved by 66 and 16 percent of men, respectively).

“Findings can inform physical activity guidelines for older adults,” the authors write.

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