Top

European Review of Aging and Physical Activity

Published in:

Open Access 01-12-2020 | Research article

Device-measured sedentary behavior and physical activity in older adults differ by demographic and health-related factors

Authors: Ing-Mari Dohrn, Paul A. Gardiner, Elisabeth Winkler, Anna-Karin Welmer

Published in: European Review of Aging and Physical Activity | Issue 1/2020

Abstract

Background

Our aim was to describe and explore older adults’ device-measured sedentary behavior and physical activity (PA) pattern by sex, age, education, marital status, body mass index, and physical function; and to assess agreement regarding fulfillment of PA recommendations, i.e. 150 min/week of moderate-to-vigorous intensity PA (MVPA), between device-measured and self-reported PA.

Method

We included 656 older adults (64% women), aged 66, 81–87 or ≥ 90 years from a Swedish population-based cohort study. The activPAL3 accelerometer provided information on sedentary behavior (sedentary time, sedentary bouts, sit-to-stand transitions) and PA. Stepping ≥100 steps/min was considered MVPA; standing and stepping < 100 steps/min were considered light-intensity PA (LPA). Self-reported PA was compared with min/week in MVPA and steps/day.

Results

On average, 60% of wear time was spent sedentary, 36% in LPA, and 4% in MVPA. Relative to men, women, had significantly (p < 0.05) more sit-to-stand transitions, spent 33 min/day less sedentary and 27 min/day more in LPA, and were more likely to report meeting PA recommendations, but showed no difference in steps/day, MVPA, or sedentary bout duration. Older age was associated with more sedentary time, lower MVPA and fewer steps/day. The prevalence of meeting PA recommendations was 59% device-measured and 88% by self-report with limited agreement between methods (Cohen’s Kappa = 0.21, Spearman’s rho = 0.28). Age differences were much more pronounced with objective measures than by self-report.

Conclusions

We found significant sex differences in sedentary behavior and time in LPA in older adults, but not in MVPA, in contrast to previous findings. Sedentary time increased with age, with small differences in accumulation pattern. MVPA time was lower with older age, obesity, and poor physical function. A majority of the participants > 80 years did not meet the PA recommendations. Given the strong relationships between sedentary behavior, PA and health in older adults, programs are needed to address these behaviors. Agreement between device-measured and self-reported fulfillment of PA recommendations was limited. Device-based measurement adds value to PA studies, providing richer and different data than self-report.

WHO. Global recommendations on physical activity for health. Physical Activity and Older Adults. https://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/factsheet_olderadults/en/ Downloaded: 2020-01-13.

Keadle SK, McKinnon R, Graubard BI, Troiano RP. Prevalence and trends in physical activity among older adults in the United States: a comparison across three national surveys. Prev Med. 2016;89:37–43. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2016.05.009.CrossRefPubMedCentral

Rydwik E, Welmer AK, Kareholt I, Angleman S, Fratiglioni L, Wang HX. Adherence to physical exercise recommendations in people over 65--the SNAC-Kungsholmen study. Eur J Pub Health. 2013;23(5):799–804. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/cks150.CrossRef

Arnardottir NY, Koster A, Van Domelen DR, Brychta RJ, Caserotti P, Eiriksdottir G, et al. Objective measurements of daily physical activity patterns and sedentary behaviour in older adults: age. Gene/Environment Susceptibility-Reykjavik Study Age and ageing. 2013;42(2):222–9. https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afs160.CrossRef

Harvey JA, Chastin SF, Skelton DA. How Sedentary are older people? A systematic review of the amount of Sedentary behavior. J Aging Phys Act. 2015;23(3):471–87. https://doi.org/10.1123/japa.2014-0164.CrossRef

Jefferis BJ, Parsons TJ, Sartini C, Ash S, Lennon LT, Papacosta O, et al. Objectively measured physical activity, sedentary behaviour and all-cause mortality in older men: does volume of activity matter more than pattern of accumulation? Br J Sports Med. 2019;53(16):1013–20. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2017-098733.CrossRef

Koolhaas CM, van Rooij FJA, Schoufour JD, Cepeda M, Tiemeier H, Brage S, et al. Objective measures of activity in the elderly: distribution and associations with demographic and health factors. J Am Med Dir Assoc. 2017;18(10):838–47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jamda.2017.04.017.CrossRefPubMedCentral

van Ballegooijen AJ, van der Ploeg HP, Visser M. Daily sedentary time and physical activity as assessed by accelerometry and their correlates in older adults. Eur Rev Aging Phys Act. 2019;16:3. https://doi.org/10.1186/s11556-019-0210-9.CrossRefPubMedCentral

Lohne-Seiler H, Hansen BH, Kolle E, Anderssen SA. Accelerometer-determined physical activity and self-reported health in a population of older adults (65-85 years): a cross-sectional study. BMC Public Health. 2014;14:284. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-14-284.CrossRefPubMedCentral

10.

Ekelund U, Tarp J, Steene-Johannessen J, Hansen BH, Jefferis B, Fagerland MW, et al. Dose-response associations between accelerometry measured physical activity and sedentary time and all cause mortality: systematic review and harmonised meta-analysis. Bmj. 2019;366:l4570. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.l4570.CrossRefPubMedCentral

11.

de Rezende LF, Rey-Lopez JP. Matsudo VK, do Carmo Luiz O. Sedentary behavior and health outcomes among older adults: a systematic review BMC public health. 2014;14:333. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-14-333.CrossRef

12.

Wilmot EG, Edwardson CL, Achana FA, Davies MJ, Gorely T, Gray LJ, et al. Sedentary time in adults and the association with diabetes, cardiovascular disease and death: systematic review and meta-analysis. Diabetologia. 2012;55(11):2895–905. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-012-2677-z.CrossRef

13.

Sedentary Behaviour Research N. Letter to the editor: standardized use of the terms "sedentary" and "sedentary behaviours". Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 2012;37(3):540–2. https://doi.org/10.1139/h2012-024.CrossRef

14.

Dunstan DW, Kingwell BA, Larsen R, Healy GN, Cerin E, Hamilton MT, et al. Breaking up prolonged sitting reduces postprandial glucose and insulin responses. Diabetes Care. 2012;35(5):976–83. https://doi.org/10.2337/dc11-1931.CrossRefPubMedCentral

15.

Healy GN, Dunstan DW, Salmon J, Cerin E, Shaw JE, Zimmet PZ, et al. Breaks in sedentary time: beneficial associations with metabolic risk. Diabetes Care. 2008;31(4):661–6. https://doi.org/10.2337/dc07-2046.CrossRef

16.

Reid N, Healy GN, Gianoudis J, Formica M, Gardiner PA, Eakin EE, et al. Association of sitting time and breaks in sitting with muscle mass, strength, function, and inflammation in community-dwelling older adults. Osteoporosis Int. 2018;29(6):1341–50. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00198-018-4428-6.CrossRef

17.

Sardinha LB, Santos DA, Silva AM, Baptista F, Owen N. Breaking-up sedentary time is associated with physical function in older adults. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2015;70(1):119–24. https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/glu193.CrossRef

18.

Rosenberg DE, Bellettiere J, Gardiner PA, Villarreal VN, Crist K, Kerr J. Independent associations between Sedentary behaviors and mental, cognitive, physical, and functional health among older adults in retirement communities. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2016;71(1):78–83. https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/glv103.CrossRef

19.

Helmerhorst HJ, Brage S, Warren J, Besson H, Ekelund U. A systematic review of reliability and objective criterion-related validity of physical activity questionnaires. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2012;9:103. https://doi.org/10.1186/1479-5868-9-103.CrossRefPubMedCentral

20.

Prince SA, Saunders TJ, Gresty K, Reid RD. A comparison of the effectiveness of physical activity and sedentary behaviour interventions in reducing sedentary time in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis of controlled trials. Obes Rev. 2014;15(11):905–19. https://doi.org/10.1111/obr.12215.CrossRefPubMedCentral

21.

Warren JM, Ekelund U, Besson H, Mezzani A, Geladas N, Vanhees L, et al. Assessment of physical activity - a review of methodologies with reference to epidemiological research: a report of the exercise physiology section of the European Association of Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation. Eur J Cardiov Prev R. 2010;17(2):127–39. https://doi.org/10.1097/HJR.0b013e32832ed875.CrossRef

22.

Bellettiere J, Carlson JA, Rosenberg D, Singhania A, Natarajan L, Berardi V, et al. Gender and age differences in hourly and daily patterns of Sedentary time in older adults living in retirement communities. PLoS One. 2015;10(8):e0136161. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0136161.CrossRefPubMedCentral

23.

Edwardson CL, Winkler EAH, Bodicoat DH, Yates T, Davies MJ, Dunstan DW, et al. Considerations when using the activPAL monitor in field-based research with adult populations. J Sport Health Sci. 2017;6(2):162–78. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jshs.2016.02.002.CrossRef

24.

Lagergren M, Fratiglioni L, Hallberg IR, Berglund J, Elmstahl S, Hagberg B, et al. A longitudinal study integrating population, care and social services data. The Swedish national study on aging and care (SNAC). Aging Clin Exp Res. 2004;16(2):158–68. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03324546.CrossRef

25.

Launer LJ, Harris T. Weight, height and body mass index distributions in geographically and ethnically diverse samples of older persons. Ad hoc committee on the statistics of anthropometry and aging. Age Ageing. 1996;25(4):300–6. https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/25.4.300.CrossRef

26.

Seeman TE, Charpentier PA, Berkman LF, Tinetti ME, Guralnik JM, Albert M, et al. Predicting changes in physical performance in a high-functioning elderly cohort: MacArthur studies of successful aging. J Gerontol. 1994;49(3):M97–108. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronj/49.3.m97.CrossRef

27.

Vellas BJ, Wayne SJ, Romero L, Baumgartner RN, Rubenstein LZ, Garry PJ. One-leg balance is an important predictor of injurious falls in older persons. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1997;45(6):735–8. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1532-5415.1997.tb01479.x.CrossRef

28.

Lindwall M, Rennemark M, Halling A, Berglund J, Hassmen P. Depression and exercise in elderly men and women: findings from the Swedish national study on aging and care. J Aging Phys Act. 2007;15(1):41–55. https://doi.org/10.1123/japa.15.1.41.CrossRef

29.

Winkler EA, Bodicoat DH, Healy GN, Bakrania K, Yates T, Owen N, et al. Identifying adults' valid waking wear time by automated estimation in activPAL data collected with a 24 h wear protocol. Physiol Meas. 2016;37(10):1653–68. https://doi.org/10.1088/0967-3334/37/10/1653.CrossRef

30.

Tudor-Locke C, Han H, Aguiar EJ, Barreira TV, Schuna JM Jr, Kang M, et al. How fast is fast enough? Walking cadence (steps/min) as a practical estimate of intensity in adults: a narrative review. Br J Sports Med. 2018;52(12):776–88. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2017-097628.CrossRefPubMedCentral

31.

Chastin SFM, Winkler EAH, Eakin EG, Gardiner PA, Dunstan DW, Owen N, et al. Sensitivity to change of objectively-derived measures of Sedentary behavior. Meas Phys Educ Exerc Sci. 2015;19(3):138–47. https://doi.org/10.1080/1091367X.2015.1050592.CrossRef

32.

Tudor-Locke C, Craig CL, Aoyagi Y, Bell RC, Croteau KA, De Bourdeaudhuij I, et al. How many steps/day are enough? For older adults and special populations. Int J Behav Nutr Phy. 2011;8. https://doi.org/10.1186/1479-5868-8-80.

33.

Garber CE, Blissmer B, Deschenes MR, Franklin BA, Lamonte MJ, Lee IM, et al. American College of Sports Medicine position stand. Quantity and quality of exercise for developing and maintaining cardiorespiratory, musculoskeletal, and neuromotor fitness in apparently healthy adults: guidance for prescribing exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2011;43(7):1334–59. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0b013e318213fefb.CrossRefPubMedCentral

34.

Tudor-Locke C, Craig CL, Thyfault JP, Spence JC. A step-defined sedentary lifestyle index: < 5000 steps/day. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 2013;38(2):100–14. https://doi.org/10.1139/apnm-2012-0235.CrossRef

35.

Terwee CB, Bot SD, de Boer MR, van der Windt DA, Knol DL, Dekker J, et al. Quality criteria were proposed for measurement properties of health status questionnaires. J Clin Epidemiol. 2007;60(1):34–42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclinepi.2006.03.012.CrossRef

36.

Landis JR, Koch GG. The measurement of observer agreement for categorical data. Biometrics. 1977 Mar;33(1):159–74.CrossRef

37.

Dohrn IM, Kwak L, Oja P, Sjostrom M, Hagstromer M. Replacing sedentary time with physical activity: a 15-year follow-up of mortality in a national cohort. Clin Epidemiol. 2018;10:179–86. https://doi.org/10.2147/CLEP.S151613.CrossRefPubMedCentral

38.

Sun F, Norman IJ, While AE. Physical activity in older people: a systematic review. BMC Public Health. 2013;13:449. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-13-449.CrossRefPubMedCentral

39.

Davis MG, Fox KR, Hillsdon M, Sharp DJ, Coulson JC, Thompson JL. Objectively measured physical activity in a diverse sample of older urban UK adults. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2011;43(4):647–54. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0b013e3181f36196.CrossRef

40.

Jones SA, Wen F, Herring AH, Evenson KR. Correlates of US adult physical activity and sedentary behavior patterns. J Sci Med Sport. 2016;19(12):1020–7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2016.03.009.CrossRefPubMedCentral

41.

Viken H, Aspvik NP, Ingebrigtsen JE, Zisko N, Wisloff U, Stensvold D. Correlates of objectively measured physical activity among Norwegian older adults: the generation 100 study. J Aging Phys Act. 2016;24(2):369–75. https://doi.org/10.1123/japa.2015-0148.CrossRef

42.

Bauman AE, Reis RS, Sallis JF, Wells JC, Loos RJ, Martin BW, et al. Correlates of physical activity: why are some people physically active and others not? Lancet. 2012;380(9838):258–71. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(12)60735-1.CrossRef

43.

Davis MG, Fox KR. Physical activity patterns assessed by accelerometry in older people. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2007;100(5):581–9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-006-0320-8.CrossRef

44.

Sparling PB, Howard BJ, Dunstan DW, Owen N. Recommendations for physical activity in older adults. BMJ. 2015 Jan 21;350:h100. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.h100.CrossRef

45.

Ekblom Ö, Ekblom-Bak E, Bolam KA, Ekblom B, Schmidt C, Söderberg S, et al. Concurrent and predictive validity of physical activity measurement items commonly used in clinical settings– data from SCAPIS pilot study. BMC public health. 2015;15(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-015-2316-y.

46.

Smith BJ, Marshall AL, Huang N. Screening for physical activity in family practice: evaluation of two brief assessment tools. Am J Prev Med. 2005;29(4):256–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2005.07.005.CrossRef

47.

Hergenroeder AL, Barone Gibbs B, Kotlarczyk MP, Kowalsky RJ, Perera S, Brach JS. Accuracy of objective physical activity monitors in measuring steps in older adults. Gerontol Geriatr Med. 2018 Jun 17;4:2333721418781126. https://doi.org/10.1177/2333721418781126.CrossRefPubMedCentral

48.

Forsén L, Loland NW, Vuillemin A, Chinapaw MJ, van Poppel MN, Mokkink LB, et al. Self-administered physical activity questionnaires for the elderly: a systematic review of measurement properties. Sports Med. 2010;40(7):601–23. https://doi.org/10.2165/11531350-000000000-00000.CrossRef

Title: Device-measured sedentary behavior and physical activity in older adults differ by demographic and health-related factors
Authors: Ing-Mari Dohrn
Paul A. Gardiner
Elisabeth Winkler
Anna-Karin Welmer
Publication date: 01-12-2020
Publisher: BioMed Central
Published in: European Review of Aging and Physical Activity / Issue 1/2020
Print ISSN: 1813-7253
Electronic ISSN: 1861-6909
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s11556-020-00241-x

ACC 2024 Congress Coverage

Heart Failure Video

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on sleep in brain health

Springer Medicine

Device-measured sedentary behavior and physical activity in older adults differ by demographic and health-related factors

Abstract

Background

Method

Results

Conclusions

ACC 2024 Congress Coverage

Year in Review: Heart failure and cardiomyopathies

Semaglutide benefits people with type 2 diabetes and obesity-related heart failure

Incentivised to exercise

New intervention for STEMI-related cardiogenic shock

» View more highlights on the ACC 2024 congress hub page

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on sleep in brain health

Springer Medicine

Abstract

Background

Method

Results

Conclusions

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 1/2020

Personality traits and physical functioning: a cross-sectional multimethod facet-level analysis

Correction to: The difference in sleep, sedentary behaviour, and physical activity between older adults with ‘healthy’ and ‘unhealthy’ cardiometabolic profiles: a cross-sectional compositional data analysis approach

Cultural adaptation and validation of the Polish version of the physical activity scale for older people living in a community: a cross-sectional study

Associations of physical activity in detailed intensity ranges with body composition and physical function. a cross-sectional study among sedentary older adults

Barriers and facilitators to adherence to walking group exercise in older people living with dementia in the community: a systematic review

The effect of exercise-based interventions on health-related quality of life and physical function in older patients with cancer receiving medical antineoplastic treatments: a systematic review

ACC 2024 Congress Coverage

Year in Review: Heart failure and cardiomyopathies

Semaglutide benefits people with type 2 diabetes and obesity-related heart failure

Incentivised to exercise

New intervention for STEMI-related cardiogenic shock

» View more highlights on the ACC 2024 congress hub page