•  
  •  
 

ASSOCIATIONS OF DAILY STEP COUNT AND STEP RATE WITH QUALITY OF LIFE IN OLDER ADULTS

Abstract

Associations between daily step count and quality of life are well established in older adults. There is less evidence about the impact of average step rate, a marker of intensity, on quality of life, and the role of body composition, a key cardiometabolic disease risk factor, as a potential mediator. PURPOSE: To determine associations of daily step count and average step rate with physical quality of life (PQL) and mental quality of life (MQL) in older adults. METHODS: Daily step count and average step rate data were recorded via accelerometry worn over 7 days from 37 older adults (mean ± SD: age = 67.9 ± 6.7 yrs; 64.9% women) who were free from injury preventing typical physical activity levels. PQL and MQL data were collected via survey and scored on a 0 to 100 scale. Body fat percentage (%BF) was assessed via BOD POD. Multivariable linear regression analyses were used to evaluate associations of step count and step rate with PQL and MQL, controlling for accelerometer wear time, age, and %BF. RESULTS: Daily step count (8603 ± 3186 steps/d) and average step rate (9.6 ± 3.5 steps/min) were associated with PQL (82.2 ± 10.4; β = 0.37, p = 0.03 and β = 0.35, p = 0.05, respectively) independent of accelerometer wear time (903.1 ± 70.9 min/d) and age. The associations of daily step count and average step rate with PQL were attenuated by %BF (30.6 ± 7.2%; β = 0.17, p = 0.45 and β = 0.12, p = 0.59, respectively). There were no significant associations between daily step count or average step rate and MQL (80.0 ± 13.2, p>0.05). CONCLUSION: These data suggest that daily step count and average step rate are positively associated with PQL but not MQL in older adults, with the associations attenuated by %BF. Increasing daily step count and average step rate while maintaining healthy body composition may be meaningful objectives for multifaceted intervention strategies for improving PQL in older adults.

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS