Associations between Smoking Status and Health-Related Physical Fitness and Balance Ability among Older Males in Taiwan.

The primary aim of this study was to examine the relationships between smoking status and health-related physical fitness and balance ability in older males residing in Taiwan. This investigation adopted a cross-sectional design, utilizing data from 7688 older males who took part in the 2014-2015 wave of the National Physical Fitness Survey of Taiwan. Various data sources, including a standardized structured questionnaire, anthropometric measurements, health-related physical fitness assessments, and balance ability tests, were analyzed. The participants were divided into three categories based on their smoking habits: never smokers, former smokers, and current smokers. Multiple regression analyses were performed to evaluate the linear association between cigarette smoking status and health-related physical fitness and balance ability performance. Health-related physical fitness and balance performance were significantly greater (p < 0.05) in the never smoker group than in the current smoker group. Current smoking status was significantly negatively (p < 0.05) associated with cardiopulmonary function, muscular endurance, flexibility, and balance performance. A history of smoking (former smoker) was significantly negatively (p < 0.05) associated with the 2-min step test, 30-s arm curl and chair stand, as well as the 8-foot up-and-go test; however, the association was not significant for the back scratch, chair sit-and-reach, and one-leg stance with eyes open performance. These results suggest that current cigarette smoking is detrimental to health-related physical fitness and balance performance in older males. Quitting smoking may reverse the effects of smoking on overall body flexibility and static balance performance in Taiwanese older adults, thereby reducing the risk of falls and incapacity.

Gender and Age Differences in Anthropometric Characteristics of Taiwanese Older Adults Aged 65 Years and Older.

A previous study provided reference data on the age and gender distribution of anthropometric parameters in Taiwanese adults. However, there are very few large-scale analyses of anthropometric data of older adults in Taiwan. Therefore, the main purpose of this study was to describe gender- and age-specific distributions of anthropometric measurements and anthropometry assessments of Taiwanese older adults. This was a cross-sectional study conducted on 22,389 adults aged 65 years or older (8017 males and 14,372 females) who participated in Taiwan's National Physical Fitness Survey 2014-2015. All participants were recruited using stratified convenience sampling from 46 physical fitness test stations in 22 cities or counties in Taiwan. The anthropometric measurements and anthropometry assessments included in the present study were the assessments of height, weight, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), hip circumference (HC), and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR). The results showed statistically significant differences in weight, height, WC, and WHR across all age groups among both male and female individuals aged 65 years and older in Taiwan. However, there was no significant difference in BMI and HC between males and females in all age groups. Anthropometric status provides an initial assessment of the overall health of the population. This study uses a representative population of Taiwanese older adults over the age of 65 for analysis and provides detailed information on anthropometric data distribution.

The Association between a Minimum Amount of Physical Activity and Subsequent Muscle Strength and Balance in Older Adults: A Prospective Study.

This study aimed to investigate the association between 15 min of daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and subsequent muscle strength and balance in older adults. Data concerning community-dwelling older Taiwanese adults (mean age, 69.5 years) were collected during the baseline period (2018) and at a 12-month follow-up survey (2019). Time spent performing MVPA was objectively assessed using a triaxial accelerometer (ActiGraph wGT3x-BT) at baseline. Upper and lower limb muscle strength were measured using handgrip strength and a five-times sit-to-stand test, respectively. Balance was assessed using a one-leg standing test. The 12-month variations in muscle strength and balance were calculated through subtracting follow-up data from baseline data. A forced entry-adjusted logistic regression analysis was conducted. In total, 65.2% of participants engaged in at least 15 min of daily MVPA in the baseline survey. After adjusting for confounders, older adults who achieved 15 min of daily MVPA during the baseline period were more likely to maintain or improve balance performance (odds ratio, 8.12). Performing 15 min of daily MVPA was found to benefit older adults' subsequent balance performance but not muscle strength.

Sleep duration and timing are nonlinearly associated with depressive symptoms among older adults.

BACKGROUND: Geriatric depression is a common but preventable psychiatric disorder; however, its association with specific sleep patterns remains unclear. Therefore, we examined the association of self-reported sleep duration and sleep timing with depressive symptoms in the older population. METHODS: A total of 1068 older Taiwanese adults (52.7% women; 72.2 ± 5.7 y) responded to a telephone survey during 2019-2020. Self-reported data on sociodemographic characteristics, sleep duration, bedtime, wake-up time (adapted items from Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index), and depressive symptoms (five-item Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale) were included. Generalized additive models were used to examine the nonlinear associations of sleep duration and midpoint sleep time (ie, the midpoint of bedtime and wake-up time) with depressive symptoms. RESULTS: The means of sleep duration and midpoint sleep time in the participants were 6 h per night and 02:13 h, respectively. The results showed marked nonlinear associations of sleep patterns with depressive symptoms. Sleep duration shorter than 4 h per night was associated with a relatively higher level of depressive symptoms, with the highest risk (coefficient = 3.41; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.12, 4.70) while sleeping 2.06 h per night. The midpoint sleep time was positively associated with depressive symptom scores after 01:00 h. CONCLUSIONS: The results showed that sleep duration and fitting sleep timing were nonlinearly associated with the risks of depressive symptoms in the general older adult population. These findings have implications for targeting nonpharmacological approaches by tackling modifiable behaviors, such as adequate sleep duration and timing, with decreased risks of depressive symptoms in the older adult population.