Middle aged men over 60 and adolescents between the ages of 12 and 19 have something in common you may not have expected. Both groups are falling well below recommended weekly activity levels; they are fellow couch potatoes.
According to a recent study out of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and published in the Journal Preventative Medicine, activity levels in adults decline after age 35 and then drop off sharply, especially among adult males over the age 60. Increasingly sedentary habits in older age and among teens is cause for concern as rates of obesity, and related health problems, soar. An inactive lifestyle increases the risk for high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, anxiety, depression and certain cancers. Sedentary seniors are also more likely to lose the ability to perform daily activities or suffer a fall; both which may hasten a loss of independence.
In the years before starting a full time job and running after a young family, adolescents are spending more time sitting; presumably using screen time after school to play video games, watch television and participate in social media rather than going outdoors to play sports, ride bikes or participate in physically active games.
Similarly, older adults entering retirement age may become more sedentary when they stop working and have more hours to fill each day. Old age is also a time when injury or illness may prevent seniors from being more physically active.
The World Health Organization recommends that older adults participate in at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity each week, in sessions of at least 10 minutes in length. To help maintain physical function, improve balance and prevent falls, regular aerobic activity such as walking, swimming or cycling should be combined with strength training.
To read more about the study, visit Johns Hopkins online by following this link. And for WHO recommendations of physical activity for adults over the age of 65 click here.
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