Exercising more, eating healthily and quitting smoking could reduce your chances of becoming frail in old age, study claims
- Scientists based at De Montfort University tracked almost 9,000 participants
- Age was the biggest risk factor for frailty, results of the 12-year study revealed
- But being overweight and smoking also increased the odds of becoming frail
Exercising more, eating healthily and quitting smoking could reduce your chances of becoming frail in old age, a study has suggested.
Scientists led by a team at Leicester’s De Montfort University tracked almost 9,000 participants over the age of 50 for 12 years, on average.
Age was the biggest risk factor for frailty – but being overweight and smoking also increases the odds of becoming frail, results showed.
Researchers calculated a 67-year-old who is sedentary and smokes has a 59 per cent chance of becoming frail by the time they turn 79.
In comparison, someone of the same age who doesn’t smoke and exercises regularly has just a 22 per cent chance.
Scientists led by a team at Leicester’s De Montfort University tracked almost 9,000 participants over the age of 50 for 12 years, on average. Age was the biggest risk factor for frailty – but being overweight and smoking also increases the odds of becoming frail
Figures show around 10 per cent of over-65s are frail, which often robs pensioners of their ability to wash and dress themselves.
Few studies have been carried out on the condition, which has made it hard for scientists to pinpoint ways to delay the onslaught of frailty.
The De Montfort-led study, published in the journal PLOS ONE, now suggests ‘there may be scope to reduce frailty incidence and progression’.
Dr Nils Niederstrasser and colleagues, who included experts from the island of Grenada, analysed data from 8,780 volunteers between 2004 and 2017.
Results showed participants who led sedentary lives were more than twice as likely to become frail over the duration of the study.
Volunteers who earned the least money and those with the greatest sensitivity to pain faced an 80 and 39 per cent greater risk, respectively.
Being obese (33 per cent), being a current or previous smoker (29 per cent), or having a high waist to hip ratio (25 per cent) all also raised the odds.
Other factors that appeared to increase the risk of becoming frail included a lack of education, having a weak lower body and loneliness.
Dr Niederstrasser’s team said obesity – which can be prevented through exercise and eating better – may cause wear and tears to joints.
They added that physical activity can also improve bone mass and muscle function, which may prevent falls – a major cause of frailty.
And smoking is known to cause a range of debilitating ailments, including heart disease, which have a ‘knock-on negative effect’ on health.
The increased risk of frailty for those in the most pain could be explained by them being less likely to move and leading more sedentary lives.
Dr Niederstrasser said: ‘By becoming more active, quitting smoking, and losing weight, a person may dramatically reduce their chance of becoming frail.
‘For example, a person who does not smoke and is physically active has half the risk of becoming frail compared to a person who is physically inactive and smokes.’