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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2017 Jul;25(7):1199-1205.
doi: 10.1002/oby.21860.

Exercise's effect on mobility disability in older adults with and without obesity: The LIFE study randomized clinical trial

Stephen B Kritchevsky  1 , Laura Lovato  2 , Elizabeth P Handing  1 , Steven Blair  3 , Anda Botoseneanu  4 , Jack M Guralnik  5 , Christine Liu  6 , Abby King  7 , Anthony P Marsh  8 , Marco Pahor  9 , W Jack Rejeski  8 , Bonnie Spring  10 , Todd Manini  9
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Exercise's effect on mobility disability in older adults with and without obesity: The LIFE study randomized clinical trial

Stephen B Kritchevsky et al. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2017 Jul.

Abstract

Objective: Some data suggest that obesity blunts the benefits of exercise on mobility in older adults. This study tested the homogeneity of the effect of a physical activity intervention on major mobility disability (MMD) across baseline obesity classifications in the Lifestyle Interventions and Independence for Elders (LIFE) Study. LIFE randomized 1,635 sedentary men and women aged 70 to 89 years to a moderate-intensity physical activity (PA) or health education program.

Methods: MMD, defined as the inability to walk 400 m, was determined over an average follow-up of 2.6 years. Participants were divided into four subgroups: (1) nonobese (BMI < 30 kg/m2 ; n = 437); (2) nonobese with high waist circumference (WC > 102 cm [men], > 88 cm [women]; n = 434); (3) class 1 obesity (30 kg/m2 ≤ BMI < 35 kg/m2 ; n = 430); and (4) class 2 + obesity (BMI ≥ 35 kg/m2 ; n = 312). Cox proportional hazard modeling was used to test an obesity by intervention interaction.

Results: The PA intervention had the largest benefit in participants with class 2 + obesity (hazard ratio 0.69, 95% confidence interval 0.48, 0.98). However, there was no statistically significant difference in benefit across obesity categories.

Conclusions: A structured PA program reduced the risk of MMD even in older adults with extreme obesity.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01072500.

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Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure: BS serves on the Scientific Advisory Board for Actigraph. All other authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. The Effect of a Physical Activity Program on the Risk of Major Mobility Disability by Baseline Obesity Status over 3.5 years of follow up: The LIFE Study
*P-value for category by treatment arm interaction. PA: Physical Activity, HE: Health Education BMI: Body Mass Index
Figure 2
Figure 2. Median Minutes of Self-Reported Moderate Intensity Walking (CHAMPS score) at Baseline and 6 Months by Obesity Category and Intervention Arm
The Baseline Mean is Pooled across Arms. Error bars represent +/− 1 standard error. PA: Physical Activity, HE: Health Education WC: Waist Circumference
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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