AUTHOR=Xu Xiaoyan , Zheng Yawen , Fang Juan , Huang Jiahui , Yang Xudong , Zhu Xianghe , Liu Yanlong , Chen Li , Wu Shaochang 

TITLE=Associations between regular physical exercise and physical, emotional, and cognitive health of older adults in China: an 8-year longitudinal study with propensity score matching

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health

VOLUME=Volume 12 - 2024

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1301067

DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2024.1301067

ISSN=2296-2565

ABSTRACT=Background: The importance of healthy ageing is growing in China, as it has the largest number of older adults in the world and is one of the fastest aging countries. This study aimed to examine the predictive value of regular physical exercise in relation to the physical, emotional, and cognitive health among samples of adults aged ≥ 60 years in China during an 8-year period.
Methods: A total of 10,691 older adults were extracted from two waves of national data of the China Family Panel Study in 2010 and 2018. To minimize the impact of selection bias on the findings, a longitudinal propensity score matching (LPSM) method was used to examine the relationships between regular physical exercise and the emotional health (depression), physical health (instrumental activities of daily living), and cognitive health (cognitive ability) of older adults. After LPSM, 856 old adults were included. The average age of participants in the regular physical exercise group at baseline year was 65.67 years, with an average age of 65.90 years for 238 males and 65.45 years for 190 females; In the non-physical exercise group, the average age was 65.70 years, with an average age of 65.45 years for 253 males and 65.98 years for 175 females.
Results: LPSM indicated that regular physical exercise has been found to be effective in improving physical function and reducing depressive symptoms of old adults, even after controlling for background differences. However, the sensitivity analysis suggests that the positive association between regular physical exercise and cognitive function may not be sufficiently valid.
Conclusions: The findings of this study indicate that engaging in long-term structured and repetitive physical exercise can have a significant positive effect on reducing depressive symptoms and enhancing the physical function of older adults. As a result, incorporating regular physical exercise into the lifestyle of older adults is recognized as an effective strategy for promoting healthy aging and reducing the strain on public health resources.