The current findings suggest that treadmill running protects against AD-like disease progression and cognitive deficits caused by an HFD in the 3xTg-AD mice.

The current findings suggest that the prognostic importance of depressive symptoms for all-cause mortality might be sex-specific in Korean older adults. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2018; 18: 950-956.

Background Obesity and physical inactivity are associated with higher prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Objective This study investigated the association between obesity and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) stratified by physical activity (PA) in Korean office workers. Methods Data obtained from 914 office workers aged 21-60 years (347 women) were used. Resting blood pressures, body mass index (BMI), and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) were measured. PA was assessed using the international physical activity questionnaire. CIMT was assessed with a carotid artery ultrasonography. Logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of obesity stratified by weekly PA for an abnormally increased CIMT. Results Logistic regression analyses showed that those who were overall obese (OR=2.50, 95% CI=1.60-3.91, P<0.001) or central obese (OR=2.08, 95% CI=1.29-3.40, P=0.003) had significantly higher estimated risks of having an abnormally increased CIMT even after adjustments for age, sex, smoking, alcohol consumption, resting blood pressures, and history of hypertension, diabetes, and hyperlipidemia, as compared with those who were not overall or central obese (OR=1). A multivariate linear regression suggested that age (P<0.001), sex (P=0.002), hypertension (P=0.014), smoking (P=0.054), BMI (P<0.001), and physical activity (P=0.011) were important determinants of abnormally elevated CIMT in this study population. Conclusion The current findings suggest that the risk of obesity for an abnormally increased CIMT is significantly modulated by demographics as well as lifestyle-related risk factors including smoking and physical inactivity in Korean office workers.

Background Decreased muscle strength and/or depression with aging are emerging as important public health concerns in both developed and developing countries. This study investigated the effects of low handgrip strength (HGS) and depression on the risk of all-cause mortality in Korean older adults. Methods Data from 13,901 Korean adults (57% women) who participated in the 2008 baseline survey and completed the 2011 follow-up assessments were used. Results In total, the current findings showed that individuals with depression only and individuals with low HGS plus depression had significantly higher risks of all-cause mortality (hazard ratio (HR) = 1.366, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.033–1.807, p = 0.029 and HR = 1.961, 95% CI = 1.409–2.736, p < 0.001, respectively) even after adjustments for all the measured covariates, compared with individuals with high HGS plus no depression (HR = 1). Gender-stratified analysis showed that men with depression only and men with depression plus low HGS had significantly higher risks of all-cause mortality (HR = 1.376, 95% CI =1.029–1.841, p = 0.031 and HR = 1.861, 95% CI = 1.306–2.651, p = 0.001, respectively) even after adjustments for all the measured covariates, compared with individuals with no depression plus high HGS (HR = 1). In women, however, the joint effect of depression and low HGS only remained significant at borderline (HR = 2.603, 95% CI = 0.981–6.908, p = 0.055) when adjusted for all the confounders. Conclusion The current finding suggested that depression and low HGS were significantly and synergistically associated with the increased risk of premature death from all causes in the Korean geriatric population.

PA was inversely and independently associated with all-cause mortality in Korean older adults.

BackgroundThis study aimed to explore the associations between weight status, physical activity, and depression in Korean older adults.MethodsWe used the baseline data drawn from the 2008 baseline survey utilized in the Living Profiles of Older People Survey, comprised of 15,146 community-dwelling older people (42.6% men and 57.4% women) aged 60 years and older residing in the Republic of Korea. After excluding respondents with missing data on height, weight, and physical activity (PA), data on 10,197 samples (43.3% men and 56.7% women) were analyzed in this study.ResultsUnderweight and completely inactive individuals had poorer sociodemographic and health behavioral characteristics and increased risks of late-life depression compared with normal weight and sufficiently active individuals, respectively. In terms of the aerobic PA guidelines, completely inactive individuals had a significantly higher risk of late-life depression (odds ratio 1.730; 95% confidence interval, 1.412–2.120) compared with sufficiently active individuals, even after adjustments for age, education, household income, night sleeping, living status, marital status, smoking, number of comorbidities, nutritional status, self-reported health status, and cognitive performance as covariates. In addition, those who did not meet the PA guidelines and were underweight or overweight/obese were more likely to have late-life depression compared to those who were active and normal weight.ConclusionsThe current findings of the study suggest that modifiable, lifestyle risk factors, such as physical inactivity, underweight, and overweight/obesity, are positively associated with late-life depression in Korean older adults.

Background: To investigate the association between involuntary weight loss (IWL) and late-life depression (LLD) in a population-based cohort study. Methods: Data (N=6945) obtained from the 2008 baseline and 2011 follow-up assessments of the Living Profiles of Older People Survey in Korea were used. Changed body weight between the 2008 and 2011 was classified into stable weight (<-5% ~ <+5%), lightweight loss (≥-5% ~ <-10%), moderate weight loss (≥-10%), lightweight gain (+≥5 ~ <+10%), and moderate weight gain (≥+10%). Results: Compared to the stable weight group, the moderate weight loss group had a higher risk of LLD (odds ratio=1.99, 95% confidence interval=1.61-2.46, P<0.001) even after adjustments for covariates, including age, BMI, education, income, life of solitude, smoking, physical activity, dependent aging, comorbidity, and cognitive function. Conclusion: IWL is significantly associated with LLD in Korean older adults, implying the prognostic importance of IWL for presenting mental health issues later in life.

Background Little is known regarding the effects of socioeconomic status (SES) and frailty on mortality in Korea. Objective This study investigated the combined impact of low SES and frailty on all-cause mortality in Korean older adults. Methods Study sample at baseline comprised 7,960 community-dwelling adults (56.8% women) aged 65 years and older. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to estimate the hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of low SES and frailty for all-cause mortality. Results Overall, low SES plus frailty resulted in an increased risk of all-cause mortality (HR = 1.56, 95% CI = 1.09–2.23, P = 0.015) even after adjustments for all the measured covariates, as compared with high SES plus nonfrailty (HR = 1). Among older adults aged 65–75 years, the increased mortality risk of either low SES plus nonfrailty (HR = 1.37, 95% CI = 1.02–1.84, P = 0.038) or high SES plus frailty (HR = 2.09, 95% CI = 1.12–3.91, P = 0.021) remained significant even after adjustments for all the covariates, as compared with high SES plus nonfrailty (HR = 1). Conclusion The current findings suggest that either low SES or frailty is significantly associated with increased all-cause mortality in Korean older adults.