Objectively-measured out-of-home behavior and physical activity in rural older adults

Abstract

This cross-sectional study investigated the association of out-of-home behavior measured by global positioning system (GPS) and amounts of physical activity. Rural older adults aged ≥ 65 years (n = 133) participated in this study. Daily step count and physical activity level were measured using an accelerometer. We monitored out-of-home behavior using a GPS sensor and calculated two indicators: out-of-home time and number of nodes (places) visited per day. In results, only the number of nodes visited was significantly associated with step count (B coefficient = 1,324; 95% CI = 622 to 2,026) and physical activity level (B coefficient = 0.05; 95% CI = 0.02 to 0.09) in the fully-adjusted model, while out-of-home time was not. A greater number of nodes visited, rather than out-of-home time, was associated with higher amounts of physical activity in older adults.