King's College. UK: Staying active allows you to age optimally, according to a study
by King’s College London and the University of Birmingham. The study of
amateur older cyclists found that many had levels of physiological
function that would place them at a much younger age compared to the
general population; debunking the common assumption that ageing
automatically makes you more frail.
The study, published in The Journal of Physiology, recruited 84
male and 41 female cycling enthusiasts aged 55 to 79 to explore how the
ageing process affects the human body, and whether specific
physiological markers can be used to determine your age.
Cyclists were recruited to exclude the effects of a sedentary
lifestyle, which can aggravate health problems and cause changes in the
body, which might appear to be due to the ageing process. Men and women
had to be able to cycle 100 km in under 6.5 hours and 60 km in 5.5
hours, respectively, to be included in the study. Smokers, heavy
drinkers and those with high blood pressure or other health conditions
were excluded from the study.
Participants underwent two days of laboratory testing at King’s.
For each participant, a physiological profile was established which
included measures of cardiovascular, respiratory, neuromuscular,
metabolic, endocrine and cognitive functions, bone strength, and health
and well-being. Volunteers’ reflexes, muscle strength, oxygen uptake
during exercise and peak explosive cycling power were determined.
The results of the study showed that in these individuals, the
effects of ageing were far from obvious. Indeed, people of different
ages could have similar levels of function such as muscle strength, lung
power and exercise capacity. The maximum rate of oxygen consumption
showed the closest association with age, but even this marker could not
identify with any degree of accuracy the age of any given individual,
which would be the requirement for any useful biomarker of ageing.
In a basic, but important test of function in older people, the
time taken to stand from a chair, walk three metres, turn, walk back and
sit down was also measured. Taking more than 15 seconds to complete the
task generally indicates a high risk of falling. Even the oldest
participants in the present study fell well below these levels, fitting
well within the norm for healthy young adults.
Overall, the study concluded that ageing is likely to be a highly
individualist phenomenon. As people are so different, the team concluded
that more studies are needed which follow the same healthy and
exercising individuals over time to better understand the effects of
ageing the body.
Dr Ross Pollock, lead author of the paper from King’s College
London, said: “An essential part of our study was deciding which
volunteers should be selected to explore the effects of ageing. The main
problem facing health research is that in modern societies the majority
of the population is inactive. A sedentary lifestyle causes
physiological problems at any age. Hence the confusion as to how much
the decline in bodily functions is due to the natural ageing process and
how much is due to the combined effects of ageing and inactivity.”
“In many models of ageing lifespan is the primary measure, but in
human beings this is arguably less important than the consequences of
deterioration in health. Healthy life expectancy – our healthspan - is
not keeping pace with the average lifespan, and the years we spend with
poor health and disabilities in old age are growing.”
Professor Stephen Harridge, senior author and Director of the
Centre of Human & Aerospace Physiological Sciences at King’s College
London where the study took place, said: “Because most of the
population is largely sedentary, the tendency is to assume that
inactivity is the inevitable condition for humans. However, given that
our genetic inheritance stems from a period when high levels of physical
activity were the likely norm, being physically active should be
considered to play an essential role in maintaining health and wellbeing
throughout life.”
Emeritus Professor Norman Lazarus, a member of the King’s team and
also a cyclist, said: “Inevitably, our bodies will experience some
decline with age, but staying physically active can buy you extra years
of function compared to sedentary people. Cycling not only keeps you
mentally alert, but requires the vigorous use of many of the body’s key
systems, such as your muscles, heart and lungs which you need for
maintaining health and for reducing the risks associated with numerous
diseases.”