Impact of a physical activity program on the quality of life of the elderly

Abstract

The elderly population has been increasing considerably over the last few years and the importance of the physical and mental well-being of this population must be noticed. The study aimed to analyze the quality of life of elderly participants in the Municipality Project called “Idade Viva”. Toward this purpose, 41 individuals of both genders aged from 60 and 78 years old were assessed. Participants were divided into two groups: Group of Elderly Practitioners of Physical Activities of the “Idade Viva” Project (G1), Group of Elderly Non-practitioners of Physical Activities of the “Idade Viva” Project (G2). The physical (PCS) and mental (MCS) parameters of quality of life were assessed using the "12 - Item Short-Form Health Survey (version 1) - (SF-12 v1)", the level of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) by the “International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ-short version). Data collection took place in the morning at the Project location. Anthropometric data were collected: body mass, height and abdominal perimeter (AP). The Shapiro-Wilk normality test and the independent T test were used for intergroup analysis. There were no significant differences regarding PCS (G1= 43.4; G2= 48.0) and MCS (G1= 47.4; G2=50.4), as well as for weekly MVPA minutes (G1= 296.0 ; G2= 180.0). G1 had a higher prevalence of active individuals (82%) compared to G2 (58%). It can be concluded that physical activity programs for elderly people can increase the level of habitual physical activity and contribute to attenuate the parameters of the Metabolic Syndrome.