Infant and childhood growth and frailty in old age: the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: Evidence from life course studies highlights the importance of infant and childhood growth as risk factors for adulthood chronic diseases. METHODS: In this sub-study of the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study, we studied 1078 individuals who had both information on body size from birth to 12 years of age and who were assessed for frailty according to the Fried criteria at the mean age of 71 years. RESULTS: Greater BMI gain between 2 and 11 years in boys was associated with frailty in old age (age-adjusted RRR 2.36, 95% CI 1.21, 4.63). No similar associations were observed in girls. CONCLUSIONS: Men who were frail in old age experienced accelerated BMI gain in childhood compared with those men who were not frail. This was not observed in women, which suggests that the patterns of early growth predisposing to frailty may vary by sex.

Early life determinants of frailty in old age: the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: there is evidence suggesting that several chronic diseases have their origins in utero and that development taking place during sensitive periods may affect the aging process. We investigated whether early life determinants would be associated with frailty in old age. METHODS: at a mean age of 71 years, 1,078 participants belonging to the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study were assessed for frailty according to the Fried frailty criteria. Early life measurements (birth weight, length, mother body mass index [BMI] and parity) were obtained from birth, child welfare and school health records. Multinomial regression analysis was used to assess the association between early life determinants and frailty in old age. RESULTS: weight, length and BMI at birth were all inversely associated with frailty in old age. A 1 kg increase in birth weight was associated with a lower relative risk ratio (RRR) of frailty (age and sex-adjusted RRR = 0.40, 95% CI: 0.19, 0.82) compared to non-frailty. Associations persisted after adjusting for several confounding factors. Compared to cohort members in the upper middle class, those who as adults worked as manual workers or belonged to the lower middle class, were at an increased risk of frailty. CONCLUSIONS: those who were small at birth were at an increased risk of developing frailty in old age, suggesting that frailty is at least partly programmed in early life. A less privileged socioeconomic status in adulthood was associated with an increased risk of frailty in old age.

Early life stress and frailty in old age: the Helsinki birth cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Evidence suggests that early life stress (ELS) may extend its effect into adulthood and predispose an individual to adverse health outcomes. We investigated whether wartime parental separation, an indicator of severe ELS, would be associated with frailty in old age. METHODS: Of the 972 participants belonging to the present sub-study of the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study, 117 (12.0%) had been evacuated abroad unaccompanied by their parents in childhood during World War II. Frailty was assessed at a mean age of 71 years according to Fried's criteria. RESULTS: Thirteen frail men (4 separated and 9 non-separated) and 20 frail women (2 separated and 18 non-separated) were identified. Compared to the non-separated men, men who had been separated had an increased relative risk ratio (RRR) of frailty (age-adjusted RRR 3.93, 95% CI 1.02, 15.11) that persisted after adjusting for several confounders. No associations were observed among women (RRR 0.62; 95% CI 0.13, 2.94). CONCLUSIONS: These preliminary results suggest that ELS might extend its effects not just into adulthood but also into old age, and secondly, that men may be more vulnerable to the long-term effects of ELS.

Relationship between physical activity and physical performance in later life in different birth weight groups.

There is strong evidence that physical activity (PA) has an influence on physical performance in later life. Also, a small body size at birth has been associated with lower physical functioning in older age and both small and high birth weight have shown to be associated with lower leisure time physical activity. However, it is unknown whether size at birth modulates the association between PA and physical performance in old age. We examined 695 individuals from the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study born in Helsinki, Finland between 1934 and 1944. At a mean age of 70.7 years PA was objectively assessed with a multisensory activity monitor and physical performance with the Senior Fitness Test (SFT). Information on birth weight and gestational age was retrieved from hospital birth records. The study participants were divided in three birth weight groups, that is <3000 g, 3000-3499 g and ⩾3500 g. The volume of PA was significantly associated with the physical performance in all birth weight groups. However, the effect size of the association was large and significant only in men with a birth weight <3000 g (ß 0.59; 95% confidence interval 0.37-0.81, P<0.001). Our study shows that the association between PA and physical performance is largest in men with low birth weight. Our results suggest that men with low birth weight might benefit most from engaging in PA in order to maintain a better physical performance.

Social participation and life-style: A longitudinal and cohort study.

This study focuses on changes occurring in one area of life-style, social participation during retirement. The population consisted of four cohorts, born in 1905-06, 1909-10, 1917-18, and 1921-22. In the longitudinal study the members of the oldest cohort were interviewed five times at the ages of 66, 70, 74, 78 and 82 years. In the cohort study the subjects were interviewed at the age of 66. Interests decreased after the age of 78 among men and women. Also, formal social participation declined with age among men and women. There were no cohort differences among men, but among women formal social participation was higher in the younger cohorts than in the older ones. In the longitudinal study education correlated positively with the interests index at almost all ages among both men and women. In the cohort study correlations between interests index and education were lower in the younger cohorts than in the older ones.

Health situation and related social conditions among 66-year-old Finnish men.

The aims of the study were to reveal the extent of physical activity, nutritional habits, smoking and alcohol consumption and the relation of these to previous occupation among recently retired men. The number of men belonging to various health risk groups was estimated on the basis of the results. About 10% had inadequate nutritional habits as judged from their food expenses and number of daily hot meals and about 20% practised physical exercise in the way which is considered necessary for the improvement of cardiovascular performance and maximal oxygen uptake. Only a small minority had been requested to undertake physical exercise. About 18% lived alone. The problems were more pronounced among the men retired from manual occupations compared with men whose main occupation had been of a sedentary nature. The results indicate that a considerable proportion of elderly men would need more advice and more adequate services in order to improve their daily living habits. Any such measures should preferably be started before retirement as the living habits adopted during the earlier periods of life seem to remain unchanged in old age. The results are based on an interview study carried out among 137 66-year-old men representing about 90% of the men of that age group living in Jyväskylä, a town of 60000 inhabitants in Central Finland.

Functional capacity of men born in 1906-10, 1926-30 and 1946-50. A basic report.

This interdisciplinary study aims at describing the functional capacity of men belonging to different generation cohorts. The development of methods for the assessment of functional capacity is also the purpose of the study. Functional capacity is defined as a hierarchy comprising physical, mental and social areas into which individuals can be placed depending on the levels of the assessed functions. The study also aims at analyzing environmental and individual factors which are assumed to cause variation in the levels of functions. The purpose of this first report is to describe the framework of the study, the methods and main results concerning differences between cohorts and occupational groups. The sampling frame consisted of the population register of Jyväskylä town in January 1981. The basic populations were men in three age groups, born in 1946-50, 1926-30 and 1906-10. From each age group a systematic random sample of 250 men was made. Persons who had moved or died by the end of August 1981 or were living in institutions (6 men) were removed from the samples. The sample sizes were further randomly reduced so that the final samples consisted of 183, 188 and 176 men. At the time of the study the ages of the cohorts were 31-35, 51-55 and 71-75. The study included postal questionnaires, interviews and laboratory examinations. The basic questionnaire dealt with the background information, living conditions, life history, occupational history, social contracts and social participation, close human relations, use of time, health status and living habits. The second postal questionnaire dealing with psychic capacity included the following main items: life changes, self-realisation, personal trait anxiety, social fears, coping, self-respect, and the purpose of life. The basic questionnaire was checked in an interview when the subjects came for the laboratory examinations. The entrance interview also included questions about the most important events of previous 24 hours. In addition the subjects filled in a questionnaire on situational anxiety. The laboratory examinations included the following tests: cognitive capacity (4 tests), audiometry, speech understanding, visual tests, vibration threshold, posture control, reaction and movement time, tapping rate, leg extension velocity, anthropometric measurements, skin measurements, bone mineral density, physiotherapist's examination, physician's examination, blood analyses, isometric strength of muscles (5 muscles), anaerobic power, aerobic power and anaerobic threshold.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)