BackgroundWe examined the relationship between incident functional disability and social participation from the perspective of number of types of organizations participated in and type of social participation in a prospective cohort study.MethodThe study was based on the Aichi Gerontological Evaluation Study (AGES) Cohort Study data. We followed 13,310 individuals aged 65 years or older for 4 years. Analysis was carried out on 12,951 subjects, excluding 359 people whose information on age or sex was missing. Social participation was categorized into 8 types.ResultsCompared to those that did not participate in any organizations, the hazard ratio (HR) was 0.83 (95% CI: 0.73–0.95) for participation in one, 0.72 (0.61–0.85) for participation in two, and 0.57 (0.46–0.70) for participation in three or more different types of organizations. In multivariable adjusted models, participation in the following types of organization was protective for incident disability: local community organizations (HR = 0.85, 95% CI: 0.76–0.96), hobby organizations (HR = 0.75, 95% CI: 0.64–0.87), and sports organizations (HR = 0.64, 95% CI: 0.54–0.81).ConclusionSocial participation may decrease the risk of incident functional disability in older people in Japan. This effect may be strengthened by participation in a variety of different types of organizations. Participating in a local community, hobby, or sports group or organization may be especially effective for decreasing the risk of disability.

BackgroundWe sought to examine prospectively the difference in the association between incident functional disability and exercise with or without sports organization participation.MethodsThe study was based on the Aichi Gerontological Evaluation Study (AGES) Cohort Study data. In October 2003, self-reported questionnaires were mailed to 29,374 non-disabled Japanese individuals aged 65 years or older. Of these, 13,310 individuals were introduced to the Study, and they were followed for 4 years. Analysis was carried out on 11,581 subjects who provided all necessary information for the analysis.ResultsAnalysis was carried out on incident functional disability by 4 groups of different combinations of performance of exercise and participation in a sports organization Active Participant (AP), Exercise Alone (EA), Passive Participant (PP) and Sedentary (S). Compared to the AP group, the EA group had a hazard ratio (HR) of 1.29 (1.02–1.64) for incident functional disability. No significant difference was seen with the PP group, with an HR of 1.16 (0.76–1.77). When a measure of social networks was added to the covariates, the HR of the EA group dropped to 1.27 (1.00–1.61), and significant differences disappeared. In contrast, it showed hardly any change when social support was added.ConclusionThe results suggested that, even with a regular exercise habit, incident functional disability may be better prevented when a person participates in a sports organization than when he/she does not. In addition, participation in a sports organization correlates positively with social networks, which may lead to a small decrease in incident functional disability.

Physical activity may be carried out alone or in a group. No comprehensive studies have been conducted on the associations between group exercise and health outcomes, the mechanisms underlying the associations with health outcomes, and determinants of participation in group exercise. The aim of this article is to review the associations and mechanisms between group exercise and health outcomes, and the determinants of participation in group exercise among healthy adults and the elderly without specific illnesses. Group exercise may reduce the risk of physical and mental illness by improving adherence to physical activity, psychological factors, and social relationships. While there may potentially be various determinants of group exercise, previous research has only examined specific demographic and environmental factors. Among the studies discussed in this review, few studies examined the differences between individual exercise and group exercise. Thus, the unique effects and determinants of group exercise remain unclear. Further studies examining these points are needed to develop a more complete knowledge base on group exercise.

Although exercising with others may have extra health benefits compared to exercising alone, few studies have examined the differences. We sought to examine whether the association of regular exercise to subjective health status differs according to whether people exercise alone and/or with others, adjusting for frequency of exercise. The study was based on the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study (JAGES) Cohort Study data. Participants were 21,684 subjects aged 65 or older. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to examine the association. The adjusted odds ratios (ORs) for poor self-rated health were significantly lower for people who exercised compared to non-exercisers. In analyses restricted to regular exercisers the ORs for poor health were 0.69 (95% confidence intervals: 0.60–0.79) for individuals exercising alone more often than with others, 0.74 (0.64–0.84) for people who were equally likely to exercise alone as with others, 0.57 (0.43–0.75) for individuals exercising with others more frequently than alone, and 0.79 (0.64–0.97) for individuals only exercising with others compared to individuals only exercising alone. Although exercising alone and exercising with others both seem to have health benefits, increased frequency of exercise with others has important health benefits regardless of the total frequency of exercise.

BackgroundParticipation in a sports group is key for the prevention of incident functional disability. Little is known about the correlates of older adults’ participation in sports groups, although this could assist with the development of effective health strategies. The purpose of this study was to identify the demographic and biological, psychosocial, behavioral, social and cultural, and environmental correlates of sports group participation among Japanese older adults.MethodsData were obtained from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation study, which was a population–based cohort of people aged ≥65 years without disability enrolled from 31 municipalities across Japan (n = 78,002). Poisson regression analysis was used to determine the associations between the factors and participation in sports groups.ResultsNon-regular participation in sports groups was associated with lower educational level, being employed, and working the longest in the agricultural/forestry/fishery industry among the demographic and biological factors and poor self-rated health and depression among the psychosocial factors. Of the behavioral factors, current smoking was negatively associated and current drinking was positively associated with regular participation in sports groups. Among the social and cultural factors, having emotional social support and participating in hobby clubs, senior citizen clubs, or volunteer groups were associated with a high prevalence of participation in sports groups. Perceptions of the presence of parks or sidewalks, good access to shops, and good accessibility to facilities were positively associated with participation in sports groups among the environmental factors.ConclusionsOur study suggests that the promotion of activities that could increase older adults’ participation in sports groups should consider a broad range of demographic and biological, psychosocial, behavioral, social and cultural, and environmental factors. Although future longitudinal studies to elucidate the causal associations are needed, encouraging participation in community groups through social networks might be effective for participation in sports groups.

Few have clarified what exercise frequencies and patterns (e.g. alone or with others) are effective for preventing depression in older adults. We examined the relationship between total frequency and/or pattern of exercise and the risk of depression after two years in older Japanese adults. We used a sub-sample of the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study (JAGES) performed in 2011 and 2013. The sample for analysis was 1,422 adults aged 65 years or older without depression and low physical strength in 2011. All variables were assessed with a questionnaire including the geriatric depression screening scale (GDS-15). Binomial logistic regression analysis was used to examine the relationships between exercise in 2011 and depression in 2013 (0 = non-depression, 1 = depression). The adjusted odds ratio (OR) for later depression was 0.52 (95% confidence intervals: 0.33–0.81) for exercise two or more times a week compared to non-exercisers. The OR for exercisers who exercise with others even a little (Ewo) was 0.53 (0.34–0.84) compared to non-exercisers. Among combinations of frequency and pattern, the OR for Ewo who exercise two or more times a week was 0.40 (0.24–0.68) compared to non-exercisers. Exercising at least twice a week and/or with others may be useful in preventing depression in older adults.

This study compared the relationship between social participation, including work, and incidence of functional decline in rural and urban older people in Japan, by focusing on the number and types of organizations older people participated in. The longitudinal data of the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study (JAGES) that followed 55,243 individuals aged 65 years or older for six years were used. The Cox proportional hazards model was employed to calculate the hazard ratio (HR) of the incidence of functional decline over six years and the stratification of rural and urban settings. In this model, we adjusted 13 variables as behavioral, psychosocial, and functional confounders. The more rural and urban older people participated in various organizations, the more they were protected from functional decline. Participation in sports (HR: rural = 0.79; urban = 0.83), hobby groups (HR: rural = 0.76; urban = 0.90), and work (HR: rural = 0.83; urban = 0.80) significantly protected against the incidence of decline in both rural and urban areas. For both rural and urban older people, promoting social participation, such as sports and hobby groups and employment support, seemed to be an important aspect of public health policies that would prevent functional decline.

BackgroundSeveral previous studies reported social participation may reduce the incident of dementia; therefore, the type of positions held in the organization may relate to dementia onset. However, this hypothesis remains largely unknown. The purpose of the present study was to examine the additive effect of a leadership position in the organization on dementia onset and social participation among elderly people in a local community, according to data from a Japanese older adults cohort study.MethodsOf 29,374 community-dwelling elderly, a total of 15,313 subjects responded to the baseline survey and were followed-up from November 2003 to March 2013. To evaluate the association between dementia onset and social participation as well as the role in the organization, we conducted Cox proportional hazard regression analysis with multiple imputation by age group (aged 75 years older or younger). The dependent variable was dementia onset, which was obtained from long-term care insurance data in Japan; independent variables were social participation and the role in the organization to which they belonged (head, manager, or treasurer). Covariates were sex, age, educational level, marriage status, job status, residence status, alcohol consumption, smoking status, and walking time, instrumental activities of daily living, depression, and medical history.ResultsDuring the follow-up period, 708 young-old elderly people (7.7%) and 1289 old-old elderly people (27.9%) developed dementia. In young-old elderly, relative to social non-participants, adjusted Hazard Ratio (HR) for dementia onset for participants (regular members + leadership positions) was 0.75 (95% confidence interval (CI), 0.64–0.88). Relative to regular members, adjusted HR for dementia onset for non-participants was 1.22 (95% CI, 1.02–1.46), for leadership positions 0.81 (95% CI, 0.65–0.99). The results for old-old elderly participants did not show that any significantly adjusted HR between dementia onset and social participation, the role in the organization.ConclusionsIn young-old elderly people, social participation might have a positive effect on dementia onset, and holding leadership positions in organization could lead to a decrease in risk of dementia onset by almost 20% than regular members.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12877-017-0688-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.