Even Without Exercising Until Their 50s... Found a Way to Improve Physical Health

Australian Researchers Track Over 10,000 People for 15 Years
"Recommend Consistent Exercise of More Than 150 Minutes per Week"

Even if individuals did not exercise until their mid-50s, starting to exercise and becoming active can improve the quality of life related to physical health in old age.

AI generated image. Photo by Pixabay

Comparison of people who consistently did '150 minutes of physical activity per week,' those who started at age 55, and those who did not

On the 3rd, Dr. Bin Nguyen and the research team at the University of Sydney in Australia published in the medical journal PLOS Medicine a study measuring physical activity and evaluating physical and mental health scores through surveys over 15 years, targeting over 10,000 Australian women since 1996.

The researchers measured physical activity every three years over 15 years among 11,336 women aged 47 to 52 in 1996 and assessed physical health composite scores (PCS) and mental health composite scores (MCS) using the 36-item Short Form Survey (SF-36) related to functional health and well-being. Participants were then divided into groups based on adherence to the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of '150 minutes of physical activity per week': those who consistently followed the guideline, those who started following it at ages 55, 60, or 65, and those who did not follow the guideline, and PCS and MCS were compared.

The WHO recommends that adults aged 18 and over engage in at least 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity per week, or at least 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity to gain substantial health benefits.

Physical health benefits in old age even when starting exercise at 55: "It is important to exercise from middle age"

As a result, the group that consistently followed the physical activity guidelines and the group that started following the guidelines at age 55 had PCS averages of 46.93 and 46.96, respectively, showing no significant difference. However, these two groups had PCS scores more than 3 points higher than the group that did not follow the guidelines (43.90). This effect remained significant even after accounting for participants' socioeconomic factors and pre-existing health conditions. However, no significant association was found between physical activity and mental health composite scores.

The researchers explained, "For women to gain physical health benefits in old age, it is important to exercise from middle age," adding, "It is advisable to increase physical activity levels to meet the guidelines even starting at age 55."