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Starting Exercise May Help
Older Women Live Longer
Embracing physical activity beyond age 65 may help women
live longer lives, recent study findings released suggest.
People who exercise have consistently been shown to lower
their risks of heart disease, diabetes, physical disability
and some forms of cancer -- but whether older adults can
extend their lives by taking up exercise has been unclear,
according to the report in the Journal of the American Medical
Association.
In the new study -- of more than 7,500 women age 65 and
up -- researchers found that sedentary women who became
more active during the study had a 48 percent lower risk
of death from any cause than those who remained inactive.
The researchers, led by Dr. Edward W. Gregg of the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, followed
the women for up to 12.5 years, asking them about their
exercise levels at the study's start and again several years
later.
All of the women estimated how much they walked each day
and the frequency and duration of leisure activities such
as dancing, gardening, aerobics and swimming during the
previous year. The researchers also evaluated the women's
medical records.
They found that women who became newly active during the
study had a 36 percent lower heart disease risk and a 51
percent lower risk of cancer than those who stayed sedentary.
"Modest increases in physical activity could have wide-ranging
benefits ranging from improved risk factors to reduced disability,"
the authors write.
"Our findings suggest these benefits may translate into
substantial reductions mortality," they add, noting that
more needs to be done to increase walking and other low-intensity
activities among older women.
However, the study authors note, their findings suggest
that boosting exercise levels may be less beneficial for
women age 75 and up and those already in poor overall health.
Women 75 years and older did lower their risk of death
when they went from a sedentary to an active lifestyle,
but the effect was not as strong as for younger women.
Women who were active throughout the study also had lower
risks of death from cardiovascular disease or any other
cause than sedentary women did.
SOURCE: Journal of the American Medical Association 2003;289:2379-2386.
Article Source: Reuters Health
Article Author: N/A
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