Active Aging Research Hub, Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University, Kobe, Japan.
Faculty of Global Human Sciences, Kobe University, Kobe, Japan.
Geriatr Gerontol Int. 2022 Nov;22(11):961-967. doi: 10.1111/ggi.14495. Epub 2022 Oct 14.
The health benefits of "going out-of-home" frequently among older adults are well known. A hilly environment would inhibit this habit. This study examined (i) longitudinal associations between a hilly environment and the frequency of going out-of-home, and (ii) the moderating effect of driving status on their association among older adults.
This study involved a longitudinal study design. Data on 856 older adults in Nada Ward, Kobe, Japan, was obtained from a three-wave questionnaire survey (Wave 1: December 2017 to January 2018; Wave 2: after 1 year; Wave 3: after 3 years). In each survey, the frequency of going out-of-home time was measured. The average land slope within 500 m network buffers of each participant's home was calculated as the index of the hilly environment. Driving status was also measured.
The latent growth model revealed that while a higher value of average land slope was not significantly associated with changes in the frequency of going out-of-home over time, it was significantly associated with a lower frequency of going out-of-home at the initial level. The interaction term in the latent growth model showed that driving status did not moderate the associations of the average land slope with the initial level of, and changes in, the frequency of going out-of-home.
Although it remains unclear whether a hilly environment would accelerate a decline in the frequency of going out-of-home over time, this study found that older adults living in a hilly environment were less likely to leave their homes. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2022; 22: 961-967.
频繁外出对老年人的健康有益是众所周知的。丘陵环境会抑制这种习惯。本研究考察了（i）丘陵环境与外出频率之间的纵向关联，以及（ii）在老年人中，驾驶状况对它们之间关联的调节作用。
本研究采用纵向研究设计。来自日本神户野田区 856 名老年人的三波问卷调查数据（波 1：2017 年 12 月至 2018 年 1 月；波 2：1 年后；波 3：3 年后）。在每次调查中，都测量了外出时间的频率。每位参与者家的 500m 网络缓冲区的平均土地坡度被计算为丘陵环境的指标。驾驶状况也进行了测量。
潜在增长模型显示，平均土地坡度的较高值与外出频率随时间的变化没有显著关联，但与外出频率的初始水平较低显著相关。潜在增长模型中的交互项表明，驾驶状况并没有调节平均土地坡度与外出频率初始水平和变化之间的关联。
虽然丘陵环境是否会随着时间的推移加速外出频率的下降仍不清楚，但本研究发现，生活在丘陵环境中的老年人离家的可能性较小。老年医学与老年病学国际 2022；22：961-967。
