Centre for Policy on Ageing



Effects of walking on mortality among nonsmoking retired men
Author(s)	Amy A Hakim, Helen Petrovitch, Cecil M Burchfiel
Journal title	The New England Journal of Medicine, vol 338, no 2, 8 January 1998
Pages	pp 94-99
Keywords	Mobility ; Ambulant ; Exercise ; Longevity ; Retired persons ; Older men ; United States of America.
Annotation	The potential benefit of low-intensity activity in terms of longevity among older men has not been clearly documented. The authors studied 707 non-smoking retired men aged 61 to 81 who were enrolled in the Honolulu Heart Program. They recorded the distance walked (miles per day) at baseline examination between 1980 and 1982. Data on overall mortality (from any cause) were collected over a 12-year follow-up period: there were 208 deaths. After adjustment for age, the mortality rate for those who walked less than 1 mile per day was nearly twice that among those who walked more than 2 miles per day. The cumulative incidence of death after 12 years for the most active walkers was reached in less than 7 years among the least active. The distance walked remained inversely related to mortality after adjustment for overall measures of activity and other risk factors. Older people should be encouraged of the benefits to health of physical activity such as walking. (RH).
Accession Number	CPA-000105007 A
Classmark	C4: C4A: CEA: BGA: BB6: BC: 7T *
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...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing.