Average life expectancy has steadil...

Average life expectancy has steadily climbed across the past century, greatly increasing the number of human frames surviving to advanced age. If the time of attack of ill health has not been pushed back, this extended survival would merely increase the number of years of ill health. Haveman-Nies and co-investigators from the SENECA (Survey in Europe upon Nutrition and the Elderly: A concocted Action) Study assessed how lifestyle factors among somewhat old Europeans affected changes in their health status and independence.

Investigators randomly culled 759 men and 778 women aged 70 to 75 years from small towns in seven different western European nations. Participants were interviewed regarding their lifestyle habits, health status, and self-care ability three times across a decade of follow-up. About single in kind half of the men and individual fourth of the women died during the cogitation period. Of the survivors, 58 percent fortunately completed the survey at the close of the decade, and 31 percent were interviewed for all three assessments. Each interview assessed self-rated health status, independence for activities of daily living, even of exercise, smoking status, and dietary quality compared with an ideal "Mediterranean" diet (i.e., increased monounsaturated fats).

The common variable in the study that had no significant result on health status or independence for the two men and women was dietary quality. Lack of physical activity caused a two- to threefold increase in the risk of decline in self-rated health and independence among surviving men Inactive women were almost three times more likely to squander their independence over the 10 years of follow-up however did not have a significant decrease in their self-rated health status. Men who smok were twice as likely to decline in health status and independence as nonsmoking men Not enough women who smok were registered to statistically analyze the sample.

The authors deduce that physical inactivity and smoking increased the risk for ill health or los of independence throughout a 10-year period in an somewhat old population, while dietary quality was not influential.

Haveman-Nies A, et al. Relation of dietary quality, physical activity, and smoking habits to 10-year changes in health status in older Europeans in the SENECA close attention Am J Public Health February 2003;93:318-23

COPYRIGHT 2003 American Academy of Family Physicians

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