Background Since the traditional models missed the possibility of formulating personalised programs centred on a person’s priorities and values, it was a pressing priority to shift from traditional disease-centred to a function-based approach of healthy ageing, which is defined as ‘the process of developing and maintaining the functional ability that enables well-being in older age’. The present study aimed to assess the prevalence of high intrinsic capacity (IC) of older adults and to examine the socio-demographic and lifestyle factors associated with IC among older adults in India. Methods The study utilises the individual-level data from the first wave of the Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI) conducted during 2017–18. The total sample size for the present study was 24,136 older adults (11,871 males and 12,265 females) aged 60 years and above. Descriptive statistics, along with bivariate analysis, was employed to present the preliminary results. Additionally, multivariable linear and logistic regression analyses were conducted to find out the association of socio-demographic and lifestyle factors with IC and its components. Results The mean IC score was found to be 7.37 (SD = 1.6) in this study. A proportion of 24.56% of older adults was observed to be in the higher IC category. Increasing age was negatively associated with high IC for older men and women. Older people who smoke tobacco (β = -0.23; CI: -0.32—-0.13) and chew tobacco (β = -0.11; CI: -0.18—-0.03) were less likely to experience high IC compared to their respective counterparts. Older adults who reported episodic alcohol drinking were less likely to have high IC (β = -0.20; CI:-0.32—-0.07). The engagement in moderate physical activity (β = 0.12; CI:0.01–0.23), vigorous physical activity (β = 0.12; CI:0.05–0.20) and yoga-related activity (β = 0.18; CI:0.09–0.26) were significantly positively associated with high IC. Among the five domains of IC, education was significantly associated with higher capacity in each domain, and increasing age was found to be a significant predictor of lower capacity in each IC domain except locomotion. Older men and women engaged in vigorous physical activity had 35 and 19% significantly higher odds of high capacity in sensory (aOR = 1.35; CI: 1.12—1.62) and psychological (aOR = 1.19; CI: 1.06—1.34) domains, respectively. Conclusions The study revealed that lifestyle behaviours including tobacco use, episodic alcohol drinking and physical activity are strongly associated with IC among older adults in India. The findings suggest that healthy lifestyle behaviours should be encouraged among older adults as an effort to improve their IC, which is the key determinant of functional ability and quality of life in later years of life.

The construct of intrinsic capacity (IC) in the context of integrated care for older adults emphasizes functional assessment from a holistic perspective. It provides reliable and comparable insights on subsequent functioning and disability. Given the paucity of research on IC and health outcomes in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), the present study examined the association of IC with geriatric conditions of functional limitations and multiple fall outcomes among older adults in India. The data used for analysis come from the first wave of the Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI), 2017–2018. The final sample size contains 24,136 older adults (11,871 males and 12,265 females) age 60 years or above. Multivariable binary logistic regression is employed to examine the association of IC and other explanatory factors with outcome variables of difficulty in activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL), falls, fall injury, and multiple falls. Of the total sample, 24.56% of older adults were observed to be in the high IC category. The prevalence of ADL difficulty, IADL difficulty, falls, multiple falls and fall-related injury is estimated to be 19.89%, 45.00%, 12.36%, 5.49% and 5.57%, respectively. Older adults who reported high IC had a significantly lower prevalence of ADL difficulty (12.26% vs 22.38%) and IADL difficulty (31.13% vs 49.52%) than those who reported low IC. Similarly, a lower prevalence of falls (9.42% vs 13.34%), fall-related injury (4.10% vs 6.06%) and multiple falls (3.46% vs 6.16%) were reported among those who had high IC. After adjusting for a large number of confounders such as age, sex, health-related attributes and lifestyle behaviors, older adults with high IC had significantly lower odds of ADL difficulty [aOR: 0.63, CI: 0.52–0.76], IADL difficulty [aOR: 0.71, CI: 0.60–0.83], falls [aOR: 0.80, CI: 0.67–0.96], multiple falls [aOR: 0.73, CI: 0.58–0.96] and fall-related injury [aOR: 0.78, CI: 0.61–0.99]. That a high IC was independently associated with a lower risk of functional difficulty and fall outcomes in later life is of enormous value in predicting subsequent functional care needs. More specifically, the findings here imply that because regular IC monitoring can predict poor health outcomes in older adults, improvements in IC should be prioritized while formulating disability and fall prevention strategies.