Search results for " functioning"
showing 10 items of 285 documents
The outdoor mobility and leisure activities of older people in five European countries
2007
ABSTRACTMany gerontological studies have dealt with the leisure activities of older people and they have generated many important theories. Although outdoor activities and mobility promote good health in old age, both decrease with increasing age as people lose physical and mental functions. This paper examines the outdoor and indoor leisure activities of 3,950 older adults and their variations by personal and environmental characteristics in Germany, Finland, Hungary, The Netherlands and Italy. The main dimensions of activity were established by factor analysis, and in all countries four factors were found: home activities, hobbies, social activities, and sports activities. Both similar an…
HEALTH AND PHYSICAL FUNCTIONING AS DETERMINANTS OF PURPOSE IN LIFE IN OLD AGE
2018
AbstractPurpose in life reflects the feeling of having goals and meaning in life. Higher purpose in life has been shown to predict better health outcomes in old age and even buffer against mortality. However, it is not known how current health and functional status reflect on the possibilities of older people to live a meaningful life. Therefore, this study aimed to explore associations of health and physical functioning with purpose in life. The participants were 273 community-dwelling 75-year-old men and women from the AGNES study. Purpose in life was assessed with the subscale of the Scales of Psychological well-being (range 7–42). Current health situation and walking ability were self-r…
Obesity and Its Impact Upon Quality of Life
2014
Obesity may have a negative effect on quality of life (QOL) and is an important outcome in the treatment of obesity. In this chapter we discuss the concept of QOL; the measurement of QOL; the mechanisms by which obesity may influence the physical, social, mental, and sexual aspects of QOL; and the effects of weight loss interventions on QOL. Finally, we discuss how health professionals may use QOL measures to improve the quality of clinical practice.
Organized Sport Participation and Physical Activity Levels among Adolescents with Functional Limitations
2017
Sufficient and regular physical activity is considered a protective factor, reducing the onset of secondary disability conditions in adolescents with chronic diseases and functional limitations. The aim of this study was to explore whether participation in organized sport may be associated to higher levels of physical activity in adolescents with functional limitations, based on a national representative sample. Data from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study collected in Finland from two data collection rounds (2002 and 2010) were conducted and pooled from adolescents aged between 13 and 15 years old with functional limitations (n = 1041). Differences in self-reported p…
Intellectual ability in young adulthood as an antecedent of physical functioning in older age.
2016
Objectives: low cognitive ability is associated with subsequent functional disability. Whether this association extends across adult life has been little studied. The aim of this study was to examine the association between intellectual ability in young adulthood and physical functioning during a 10-year follow-up in older age.Methods: three hundred and sixty persons of the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study (HBCS) male members, born between 1934 and 1944 and residing in Finland in 1971, took part in The Finnish Defence Forces Basic Intellectual Ability Test during the first 2 weeks of their military service training between 1952 and 1972. Their physical functioning was assessed twice using the Sh…
Self-reported hearing is associated with time spent out-of-home and withdrawal from leisure activities in older community-dwelling adults.
2015
Background Hearing difficulties are prevalent among older people and can lead to difficulties in social interaction. These difficulties may increase the tendency to remain at home and withdraw from leisure activities. Aims To investigate whether self-reported hearing problems are associated with time spent out-of-home and withdrawal from a leisure activity among older persons. Methods Cross-sectional and longitudinal data on 75- to 90-year-old community-dwelling men and women (n = 767) was used. Self-reports of hearing, diseases, and difficulty walking 2 km were obtained via home interviews at baseline, and withdrawal from a leisure activity via 1- and 2-year follow-up telephone interviews.…
Job demand and control in mid-life and physical and mental functioning in early old age: do childhood factors explain these associations in a British…
2014
ObjectivesAdverse work-related exposures have been linked with decreased physical and mental functioning in later life, however, whether childhood factors explain the associations between work exposures and functioning is unknown. Our aim was to investigate if job demand and control in mid-life were related to self-reported physical and mental functioning in early old age and whether childhood factors explained these associations.DesignProspective cohort study.SettingEngland, Scotland and Wales.Participants and outcome measuresData come from the UK Medical Research Council National Survey of Health and Development, a cohort with follow-up since birth in 1946. 1485 occupationally active stud…
Positive Effects of a Short-Term Intense Elastic Resistance Training Program on Body Composition and Physical Functioning in Overweight Older Women
2018
The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of a resistance training program (RTP) in older overweight women (OOW) using two different types of elastic devices. Methods: This study was a randomized controlled trial with pre- and postintervention measures. Participants included OOW, aged 60–85 years, with no medical history of disease that would preclude them from engaging in physical exercise. Participants were randomly divided into the following groups: elastic tubes with handles group (ETG; n = 22), traditional elastic bands group ( n = 21), and control group (CG; n = 20). Exercise groups (EGs) performed the following supervised RTP: 8 weeks, twice weekly, six overall body exerci…
Falls, Cognitive Function, and Balance Profiles of Singapore Community-Dwelling Elderly Individuals : Key Risk Factors
2017
Objective: This study compared occurrence of falls, cognitive function, and balance profiles across participants in elderly age categories, investigating associations between the 3 aspects in a sample of Singapore’s elderly population. Method: Community-dwelling elderly individuals (N = 385) were randomly recruited and grouped into “young-old (65-74 years),” “medium-old (75-84 years),” and “oldest-old (above 85 years)” groups. The Fallproof Health and Activity questionnaire, adapted Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and Berg Balance Scale (BBS) tests were used to survey information related to falls, cognition, and balance profiles. Results: Findings revealed significant differences in M…
Item response theory and differential test functioning analysis of the HBSC-Symptom-Checklist across 46 countries
2022
Abstract Background The Symptom Checklist (SCL) developed by the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study is a non-clinical measure of psychosomatic complaints (e.g., headache and feeling low) that has been used in numerous studies. Several studies have investigated the psychometric characteristics of this scale; however, some psychometric properties remain unclear, among them especially a) dimensionality, b) adequacy of the Graded Response Model (GRM), and c) measurement invariance across countries. Methods Data from 229,906 adolescents aged 11, 13 and 15 from 46 countries that participated in the 2018 HBSC survey were analyzed. Adolescents were selected using representative s…