Dataset Information

Air Pollution and Performance-Based Physical Functioning in Dutch Older Adults.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Functional limitations are a major cause for needing care and institutionalization among older adults. Exposure to air pollution has been suggested to be associated with increased functional limitations in older people. OBJECTIVE:Our objective was to assess the association between air pollution and physical functioning in Dutch older adults. METHODS:We analyzed data on performance-based (walking speed, ability to rise from a chair, putting on and taking off a cardigan, balance test) and self-reported physical functioning for 1,762 participants of the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam, who participated in measurement cycles performed in 2005/2006, 2008/2009, and 2011/2012. Annual average outdoor air pollution concentrations [nitrogen dioxide (NO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate matter with diameters ?2.5?m (PM2.5), ?10?m (PM10), and 2.5-10?m (PMcoarse), and PM2.5 absorbance] at the home address at the start of the first measurement cycle were estimated using land-use regression models. Analyses were performed using mixed models with random participant intercepts adjusting for potential confounders. RESULTS:Exposure to most air pollutants was associated with reduced performance-based physical functioning; for example, an interquartile range increase in NO2 exposure was associated with a 0.22 (95% confidence interval: 0.03, 0.42) lower performance test score in fully adjusted models, equivalent to the difference in performance score between participants who differed by 9 mo in age. Exposure to air pollution was generally not statistically significantly associated with self-reported functional limitations, and not associated with a faster decline in performance-based physical functioning over the study period. CONCLUSION:This study suggests that exposure to air pollution may adversely affect physical performance of older adults in the Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP2239.

SUBMITTER: de Zwart F

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6014703 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Air Pollution and Performance-Based Physical Functioning in Dutch Older Adults.

de Zwart Femke F Brunekreef Bert B Timmermans Erik E Deeg Dorly D Gehring Ulrike U

Environmental health perspectives 20180119 1

<h4>Background</h4>Functional limitations are a major cause for needing care and institutionalization among older adults. Exposure to air pollution has been suggested to be associated with increased functional limitations in older people.<h4>Objective</h4>Our objective was to assess the association between air pollution and physical functioning in Dutch older adults.<h4>Methods</h4>We analyzed data on performance-based (walking speed, ability to rise from a chair, putting on and taking off a car ...[more]

PMID: 29364820

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Project description:BackgroundOlder adults with type 2 diabetes are at higher risk of developing common geriatric syndromes and have a lower quality of life. To prevent type 2 diabetes in older adults, it's unclear whether the health benefits of physical activity (PA) will be influenced by the harms caused by increased exposure to air pollution during PA, especially in developing countries with severe air pollution problem. We aimed to investigate the joint effects of PA and long-term exposure to air pollution on the type 2 diabetes in older adults from China.MethodsThis cross-sectional study was based on the China Multi-Ethnic cohort (CMEC) study. The metabolic equivalent of PA was calculated according to the PA scale during the CMEC baseline survey. High resolution air pollution datasets (PM10, PM2.5 and PM1) were collected from open products. The joint effects were assessed by the marginal structural mean model with generalized propensity score.ResultsA total of 36,562 participants aged 50 to 79 years were included in the study. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes was 10.88%. The mean (SD) level of PA was 24.93 (18.60) MET-h/d, and the mean (SD) level of PM10, PM2.5, and PM1 were 70.00 (23.32) µg/m3, 40.45 (15.66) µg/m3 and 27.62 (6.51) µg/m3, respectively. With PM10 < 92 µg/m3, PM2.5 < 61 µg/m3, and PM1 < 36 µg/m3, the benefit effects of PA on type 2 diabetes was significantly greater than the harms due to PMs when PA levels were roughly below 80 MET-h/d. With PM10 ≥ 92 µg/m3, PM2.5 ≥ 61 µg/m3, and PM1 ≥ 36 µg/m3, the odds ratio (OR) first decreased and then rose rapidly with confidence intervals progressively greater than 1 and break-even points close to or even below 40 MET-h/d.ConclusionsOur findings implied that for the prevention of type 2 diabetes in older adults, the PA health benefits outweighed the harms of air pollution except in extreme air pollution situations, and suggested that when the air quality of residence is severe, the PA levels should ideally not exceed 40 MET-h/d.

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Dataset Information

Air Pollution and Performance-Based Physical Functioning in Dutch Older Adults.

Publications

Air Pollution and Performance-Based Physical Functioning in Dutch Older Adults.

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