Citation

Ando T, Sakai H, Uchiyama Y. BMC Geriatr. 2017; 17(1): 96.

Affiliation

Human Science Research Domain, Toyota Central R&D Labs., Inc, 41-1 Yokomichi, Nagakute, Aichi, 480-1192, Japan. uchiyama@mosk.tytlabs.co.jp.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group - BMC)

DOI

10.1186/s12877-017-0484-6

PMID

28446144

PMCID

PMC5406876

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Older people are at greater risk of traffic accidents, partially because of age-related declines in visual function, including reduced useful field of view (UFOV). However, lifestyle factors which cause age-related decline in UFOV remain poorly understood. We conducted a study to investigate whether physical activity and appetite status were related to UFOV test performance in healthy older adults.

METHODS: Thirty community-dwelling older people (age 68.6 ± 3.1 years, 15 females) were enrolled in this study. Each participant completed the Council on Nutrition appetite questionnaire (CNAQ) and a UFOV test. They then wore a tri-axial accelerometer (Active style Pro HJA-350IT) for 3-6 consecutive days to objectively measure their PA in free-living conditions.

RESULTS: Longer time spent in vigorous physical activity was significantly associated with better UFOV test performance when adjusted for age and accelerometer wear time (non-locomotive: r = -0.435, locomotive: r = -0.449; n = 25). In addition, male, but not female, participants with a higher CNAQ score had significantly better UFOV test performance in both an unadjusted model (r = -0.560; n = 15) and a model adjusted for age (r = -0.635; n = 15).

CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that appetite status among males and time spent in high intensity PA are associated with visual function related to driving competence in older adults.

Language: en

Keywords

Accelerometry; Aging; Appetite; Cognitive decline; Driving safety; Lifestyle habit; Physical activity; Useful field of view