Assessment of Cognitive Function in European Adults Aged 50+in Relation to Their Handgrip Strength and Physical Inactivity: The SHARE Study During 2019-2020.

BACKGROUND: Cognitive function is crucial during aging. This study assessed the cognitive function of European adults aged 50 and over in relation to handgrip strength and physical inactivity. Study Design: This was a cross-sectional survey. METHODS: Data were collected from 41,395 adults from 27 European countries participating in the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) during 2019-2020. Cognitive function was assessed based on five tests, and cognitive impairment was defined using 3+tests. Handgrip strength and physical inactivity were also correlated through the analysis of covariance using a complex study design. RESULTS: The majority of participants were female (56.6%), with a mean age of 70.9 years, and 22.6% presented multimorbidity. Furthermore, 51.1% had a normal cognitive function, while 13.3% had cognitive impairment (The estimated population was 21,944,722). Moreover, cognitive impairment was more prevalent in females than in males (14.4% vs. 12.0%, P<0.001) in patients with no years of education (P<0.001) and origin from southern European countries (P<0.001). Additionally, participants with cognitive impairment had lower mean handgrip strength compared to those with cognitive impairment in 1-2 criteria or with normal cognitive function (29.3 vs. 33.4 and 35.1 kg, respectively, P<0.001). Physically inactive participants had higher odds ratio (OR) of cognitive impairment than those engaging in moderate/vigorous physical activity, both in 1-2 tests (OR:1.73, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.32-2.26) and in 3+tests (OR: 3.36, 95% CI: 2.57-4.40). CONCLUSION: Cognitive impairment presented low prevalence and was associated with low levels of handgrip strength and physical inactivity. These specific factors may play a special role in early detection, diagnosis, and treatment or may slow down the progression of cognitive impairment.

Injury prevalence and risk factors in a Greek team's professional football (soccer) players: a three consecutive seasons survey.

This study investigated the prevalence and risk factors of injuries on a cohort of 123 Greek team's professional football players during three consecutive seasons, 2015/16-to-2017/18. Injuries were assessed and regression analysis was used to evaluate the potential risk factors. Three-quarters of the players were recorded as injured with 2.3 injuries/injured player, and the injury incidence was 55 injuries/1,000 match-playing-exposure-hours. The mean rehabilitation days were 29.3/injured player (95%CI 22.4-36.8) and 13.0/injury (95%CI 8.6-17.4). The majority of injured players has been found to have moderate-to-major/severe injuries and most of the injuries were traumatic than overuse (p < 0.05). The number of injuries were related to the recurrence of injury (beta = 0.646, p < 0.001) and the rehabilitations days (beta = 0.271, p < 0.001). High prevalence of injuries was found as the recurrence of injury and rehabilitation days were their main predictive risk factors. In order to reduce the risk of injuries, continuous effort is required in the rehabilitation of players.

Association of Behavioral Risk Factors for Chronic Diseases With Physical and Mental Health in European Adults Aged 50 Years or Older, 2004-2005.

INTRODUCTION: Noncommunicable diseases are the leading cause of illness and death worldwide; behavioral risk factors (BRFs) contribute to these diseases. We assessed the presence of multiple BRFs among European adults according to their physical and mental health status. METHODS: We used data from 26,026 adults aged 50 years or older from 11 countries that participated in the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (2004-2005). BRFs (overweight or obesity, smoking, physical inactivity, and risky alcohol consumption) were assessed according to physical health (ie, presence of chronic diseases, disease symptoms, or limitations in activities of daily living) and mental health (depression) through multiple regression estimations. RESULTS: Overweight or obesity in men and physical inactivity in women were the most prevalent BRFs. Compared with physically active adults, physically inactive adults had a higher mean number of chronic diseases (1.33 vs 1.26) and chronic disease symptoms (1.55 vs 1.47). Risky alcohol consumption (≥4 servings of an alcohol beverage ≥3 times a week) was associated with a higher mean depression score (2.84 vs 2.47). Compared with adults with 0 or 1 BRF, adults with 2 or more BRFs had significantly higher odds of having 1 or more chronic diseases (men: 1.52; women: 1.73) and functional limitations (men: 1.65; women: 1.79) and higher prevalence of high blood pressure (37.8% vs 28.2). Belgian adults with BRFs had the highest mean number of chronic diseases or functional limitations among those who were overweight or obese and the highest mean number of chronic diseases and disease symptoms among those who smoked and were physically inactive. CONCLUSION: We found revealed significant positive associations between BRFs and poor health among middle-aged and older European adults. Primary health care intervention programs should focus on developing ways to reduce BRF prevalence in this population.

Prevalence of multiple behavioral risk factors for chronic diseases in adults aged 50+, from eleven European countries - the SHARE study (2004).

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the prevalence and the associations between multiple behavioral risk factors (MBRFs) for chronic diseases in European adults. METHOD: Data from 26,743 individuals, aged 50+years, participating in the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) (2004/05) were used. MBRFs included physical inactivity, high body weight, smoking habits and risky alcohol consumption. Estimations were based on weights according to the complex sampling design. RESULTS: In total, 71.2% of individuals were physically inactive, while 59.8% had high body weight. 53.4% had 2+ MBRFs, while males presented higher prevalence of MBRF clusters than females (P < 0.001). Females displayed lower odds of increased alcohol consumption (OR = 0.16, P < 0.001) and higher odds of physical inactivity (OR = 1.47, P < 0.001) than males. Individuals who lived alone, compared to living with a partner and those with more, compared to fewer education years, exhibited a significantly higher and lower, respectively, mean MBRF score (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of MBRFs was considerably high in this sample of European adults, while not living alone and having higher education may prove protective. These findings could be used for the design of primary healthcare programs by health professionals.

Secular trends in fitness, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, and TV-viewing among first grade school children of Crete, Greece between 1992/93 and 2006/07.

OBJECTIVES: To assess secular changes in physical fitness (PF), moderate-to-vigorous-physical activity (MVPA) and TV-viewing in 1st-grade children from Crete, Greece. DESIGN: Cross-sectional cohorts examined in academic years 1992/93 and 2006/07. METHODS: Two representative samples of children, aged 5.9-7.8 years, were studied during 1992/93 (N=606) and 2006/07 (N=361). PF (sit-and-reach, standing-broad-jump, sit-ups and 20 m-shuttle-run-test) was assessed by the European-PF test battery and MVPA by a physical activity (PA) questionnaire. Data on the frequency of TV-viewing was also collected. RESULTS: Between 1992/93 and 2006/07, there was a significant increase in all fitness tests in both genders (P<0.001) and in MVPA in boys (76.5 min/week vs. 38.7 min/week, P<0.001). Time spent watching TV on weekdays was significantly more in both genders in 2006/07, compared to 1992/93 (P<0.001). In 2006/07, active boys and active girls spent more time in MVPA than active boys and girls in 1992/93 (P<0.001). Significantly higher proportions of boys and girls engaged in vigorous activities in 2006/07, than 1992/93 (P<0.001 and P=0.027, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: A significant increase in physical and cardiorespiratory fitness in both genders and MVPA in boys was observed in children from Crete between 1992/93 and 2006/07. The increase in weekday TV-viewing, despite being parallel to an increase in leisure-time MVPA, could have an unfavorable effect on health and should be tackled in future interventions in this population. Dietary, anthropometric and biochemical indices should also be investigated to assess their impact on the secular changes in physical fitness and activity observed in this sample of children.

Secular changes in anthropometric measurements and blood pressure in children of Crete, Greece, during 1992/93 and 2006/07.

OBJECTIVES: To examine secular changes in anthropometric measurements and blood pressure (BP) in 1st-grade children in Crete, Greece, during 1992/93 and 2006/07. METHODS: Children (aged 5.7-7.8 years) from two representative cross-sectional cohorts participated during 1992/93 (n=606) and 2006/07 (n=361). Body weight, body-mass-index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-to-hip (WHpR) and waist-to-height (WHtR) ratios, BP, 20 m-shuttle-run test (20 mSRT), and moderate-to-vigorous-physical-activity (MVPA) were assessed. RESULTS: There was a significant increase (P<0.01) in body weight (+10.2% and +6.7%), BMI (+6.9% and +4.0%), WC (+5.6% and +5.1%), WHpR (+3.0% and +3.4%), and WHtR (+4.2% and +3.8%), for boys and girls, respectively, and in the proportion of overweight/obese boys (19.4% vs. 33.7%; P<0.001) between 1992/93 and 2006/07. Both genders had decreased BP measurements in 2006/07 compared to 1992/93 (P<0.001). In both periods, BP was higher in obese compared to overweight and normal children (P<0.001), but there was no relationship between BP and physical activity (PA). CONCLUSIONS: A substantial decrease in BP was observed in Cretan children over a 15-year period, despite a concurrent increase in obesity and anthropometric indices. This may be attributed to lifestyle and dietary changes and does not support the hypothesis that the obesity epidemic in children has resulted in proportionate increases in BP levels.