Ruuskanen J M, Ruoppila I
University of Jyväskylä, Laboratory of Physical Activity and Health, Finland.
Age Ageing. 1995 Jul;24(4):292-6. doi: 10.1093/ageing/24.4.292.
This report deals with the findings of an epidemiological interview carried out among two representative samples (n = 800 + 800) consisting of persons born in 1904-13 and in 1914-23, and living at home in the year 1988 in the city of Jyväskylä, central Finland. The participation rate was 80% (n = 1244). It appeared that overall involvement in physical exercise decreased with increasing age, especially among the women. About 50% of the subjects carried out regular walking exercise and 40% practised some form of home gynastics which was considered not to be very intensive. About 20% of the subjects were no more physically active than was essential for performing their daily activities. According to log-linear and regression models, there was a significant association between higher prevalence of depression and no regular physical exercise. Self-rated meaningfulness of life and better subjective health were also significantly related to regular and intensive physical exercise. These relationships were more obvious among the younger cohort (65-74 years). The results suggest that involvement in physical exercise may promote positive perceptions of psychological well-being among the elderly. On the other hand, psychological well-being seemed to be an important predictor for staying physically active at advanced ages. These findings are based on a cross-sectional study and therefore leave open the question of direction of causality which will be pursued in a follow-up survey.
本报告涉及对两个具有代表性样本（n = 800 + 800）进行的流行病学访谈结果，样本由出生于1904 - 1913年和1914 - 1923年、1988年居住在芬兰中部于韦斯屈莱市家中的人组成。参与率为80%（n = 1244）。结果显示，总体而言，体育锻炼的参与度随年龄增长而下降，尤其是在女性中。约50%的受试者进行定期步行锻炼，40%进行某种形式的家庭体操，不过被认为强度不大。约20%的受试者的身体活动程度仅维持在进行日常活动所必需的水平。根据对数线性模型和回归模型，抑郁症患病率较高与缺乏定期体育锻炼之间存在显著关联。自评生活意义和更好的主观健康状况也与定期且高强度的体育锻炼显著相关。这些关系在较年轻的队列（65 - 74岁）中更为明显。结果表明，参与体育锻炼可能会促进老年人对心理健康产生积极认知。另一方面，心理健康似乎是高龄时保持身体活跃的一个重要预测因素。这些发现基于一项横断面研究，因此因果关系的方向问题仍然悬而未决，这将在后续调查中进一步探讨。
