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Physical Ac1vity and

Aging I: How Old Are
You?
Guest Lecture by: Rachael Stone
PhD. Candidate
January 16th, 2015

HOW OLD ARE YOU?

Lecture Objec1ves
Understanding the popula1on
Demographics and sta1s1cs

Dimensions of Aging
History of successful aging

Physical Ac1vity
Modali1es
Benets

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Why is this an important

topic not only for
Kinesiology students, but
the en1re Canadian public?

The Answer
1. The Baby Boom Genera9on (1946-64)

Mass increase in birth rate

Changed social structure

14.5% of the current Canadian popula1on are

65 years or older
25% to be 65+ by 2036

(Canadian Ins1tute for Health Informa1on, 2011)

The Answer

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The Answer
2. Individual life expectancy is ever

increasing

Most consistent
scien1c trend
since the 1800s

(Ontario Ministry of Finance, 2012; Oeppen & Vaupel, 2002)

The Answer
3. Living longer, but with reduced quality
of life (QOL)
Living with comorbidi1es
Most common:

#1 contribu1ng factor is NOT age, but a

sedentary lifestyle
54% males and 65% females over 65 are
considered inac1ve in Canada

The Answer

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The Answer
4. Current Canadian health care system is

not sustainable

Older adults with reduced QOL are one of

the largest strains on the system
40% of healthcare spent on 65+
#1 health care crisis with the greatest opportunity
for successful change

Types of Func1onal Aging

Primary/Normal

Secondary/Pathological

Successful/Op9mal

Successful Aging A Brief History

Cicero (44 BC)

Havinghurst (1961)

Fries (1980)

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Successful Aging
Rowe and Kahn (1987)

Strawbridge et al. (2002)

Jeste et al. (2010)

Successful Aging
Meisner, Dogra, Logan and Baker (2010)
Illustrated a dose-response rela1onship
between PA levels and the likelihood of
aging successfully

Moderate levels of PA can op1mize bio-

psycho-social health in late life

Successful Aging
Inac9vity:
____ x more likely to have a chronic disease
____ x more likely to have func1onal impairments
____ x more likely to be socially disengaged

Being ac1ve can aoenuate physical and

psychosocial age-related declines

(Meisner, Dogra, Logan, & Baker, 2010)

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Sedentary vs. Inac1vity

Middle (45-64 yrs) and older aged (65+) adults
spend 69% of waking hours sedentary (1.5
METs)
Dose-response with SA?
Least sedentary (sirng <2 hrs/day) were 43%
more likely to be SA than most sedentary (4+ hrs/
day)






(Dogra & Stathokostas, 2012)

Benets of PA
Physiological:
CV func1on, muscle mass, bone density,
sleep quality, strength, balance and exibility

Social:
Enhanced social network/support

Psychological:
cogni1ve func1on, + aect, self-ecacy

Physical Declines
General physical capaci9es decline at a
rate of 0.5-1.0% per year aXer 30
Commonly related to life1me of being
sedentary

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Maintenance Models
1. Compensa9on Model (Salthouse)
Individual components of performance may
decline, but overall performance quality may
be maintained via compensa1on
i.e. older vs. younger typists

Decline

Compensation

Stability

Maintenance Models
2. Selec9ve Maintenance Model (Ericsson &
Krampe)

Deliberate prac1ce (domain-specic) can

aoenuate age-related declines
i.e. older expert pianist vs. younger pianist

Maintaining Performance
Theory of Selec1ve Op1miza1on with
Compensa1on (Baltes & Baltes, 1990)
Selec9on:

Op9miza9on:
Compensa9on:

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Master Athletes
Golfers across career:
Purng accuracy- 0.11% per year
Driving distance- 0.13% per year
Scoring average- 0.14% per year

Hor-what?
Hormesis
Biological process where exposed to mild levels of
stress reduces vulnerability to future stresses
Low dose of s1mula1on High dose inhibi1on

Cogni1ve Benets
Brain Reserve (BR) vs. Cogni1ve Reserve (CR)
BR = amount of damage to neural 1ssue that can
be withstood while preserving func1oning
CR = brains ability to adapt to damage via
compensa1on

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Cogni1ve Benets
Execu9ve brain func9oning begins to decline
around 40 years of age
5% of adults 65+ report having 1 or more
cogni1ve impairment
A strong body makes the mind strong




Thomas Jeerson
Nurse Health Study (1986); Honolulu Asian-Aging
Cohort (2000)

Neurogenic Reserve Hypothesis (Fabel et al., 2009)

Does type of ac1vity maoer?

Psychological Benets
Aect

Posi1ve aect decreases with age, nega1ve

aect stays rela1vely consistent
Strength training found to have greatest
benet

Self-ecacy

Increase PA levels=increase self-

ecacy=increase self-esteem=increase self-
concept

Psychosocial Benets
Group vs. Individual Ac9ve Environments (Stone,
Meisner, & Baker, 2012)

Outcome = diagnosed with a mood disorder

Sample of older adults aged 50+
MUCH less exercising in group (0.1% vs. 83%)
Most protec9on found with par9cipa9on in both
environments

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Mechanisms of PA: Review

Monoamine Hypothesis
Neurogenic Hypothesis
Thermogenic Hypothesis
Distrac1on Hypothesis
Self-Image/Mastery Hypothesis
Social Interac1on Hypothesis

The vast benets of PA for the aging

popula1on are known facts

AND
Declines are associated with a sedentary
lifestyle, which can be aoenuated for with
more physical ac1vity

Why do so few older

adults remain ac9ve??

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