Effect of changes in moderate or vigorous physical activity on changes in health-related quality of life of elderly British women over seven years.

PURPOSE: This study investigates the effect of changes in moderate or vigorous physical activity (MVPA) on trajectories in health-related quality of life (HR-QoL) over 7 years in British elderly women.

METHODS

A total of 1,926 women from the British Women's Heart and Health Study with information on MVPA and HR-QoL [measured using Euro quality of life 5 dimension (EQ-5D)] at baseline and at 7 years of follow-up were included in the analysis. Baseline and 7-year follow-up MVPA values were categorised into 3 groups, generating 9 categories of change in MVPA. Logistic regression was used to obtain odds ratios (ORs) of maintaining or improving HR-QoL according to different patterns of change in MVPA level.

RESULTS

Women who remained inactive over the 7 years of follow-up had the largest reduction in their EQ-5D scores. Compared to these women, women that increased their MPVA level from "inactive" to "low" or to "moderate-high" were more likely to maintain or improve their HR-QoL over 7 years (ORs 1.65 or 2.70, respectively, p value for trend <0.001). After adjustment for baseline EQ-5D score and a wide range of potential confounders, results remained largely unchanged, though precision of the estimates generally decreased.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest that relatively regular MVPA, even taken up later in life, can help older women prevent a decline in HR-QoL and even improve their enjoyment of life.