Benefits of Walking and the Older Adult: Improved Health is Just a Step Away

Sandra Craver Dorr

Walking is a simple act that healthy humans participate in everyday. A child walks before the age of two years and after that time gives the act very little thought, taking the ability for granted. As adults reach sixty years of age or older, one has to wonder if this simple act of walking can help decrease health risk and improve a person’s overall health? Walking may not be an exciting topic of study, there have been few research studies conducted on the subject in the United States, but studies have been conducted in other countries that focus on the benefits of walking in the older adult population.

In the study “The Effects of a Walking Exercise Program on Physical Function and Emotional State of Elderly Korean Women” the researcher evaluates the effects of an eight week outdoor walking exercise program on sedentary Korean women between the ages of 60 and 75. The study group and the control group were recruited from the elderly centers of several apartment complexes. The study group started by walking 50 minutes a week and increased to one hour three times a week with the goal to keep their target heart rate at 40 to 60%. A heart rate monitor was worn to insure this range. The study provided evidence that the VO2max, which measure the efficiency of the cardiovascular systems ability to transport oxygen, improved in the women who participated in the walking program. The resting pulse rate was significantly less in the study participants after the eight week exercise program and there was some decrease in blood pressure observed in the walkers. The study found a significant elevation of mood in the walking group, noting a decrease in depression and anxiety.

In the article “The Effect of Habitual Exercise on Respiratory-Muscle Function in Older Adults”, 72 healthy older Australian adults were recruited from the local community to participate in a study to examine the role of respiratory muscle function and exercise performance. The study also investigated whether participation in regular exercise by older adults could slow or even reverse the age-related decay in respiratory muscle strength (Watsford, 2005). Exercise of moderate intensity was performed five hours per week and typically consisted of walking but could include cycling, running, resistance training, or court sports. A non-active control group of healthy adults was also selected. Respiratory assessments were performed on both groups to measure respiratory muscle strength and oxygen capacity. Both the study group and control group were evaluated at the conclusion of the study with a walking test. The walking test asked both groups to complete a 1.6 km walk “as fast as comfortably possible”. The study showed that the active group had greater respiratory muscle strength and oxygen capacity than the non-active group. The active group completed the 1.6 km walk faster than the non-active group.

A third article, “Impact of an Exercise and Walking Protocol on Quality of Life for Elderly People with OA of the Knee” discusses a study conducted at Brazilian University using men and women 65 years and older with a diagnosis of osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee. The participants had been referred for rehabilitation at an outpatient geriatric unit of the university hospital and were divided into two groups, a control group and an experimental group. All participants attended an educational session with a lecture about the disease process, joint protection, pain management and information about activities of daily living (ADLs). The experimental group, participated in a 12 week exercise program which included 40 minutes of walking, and also included stretching, resistance, and weight-bearing exercises, and a cool down period. The experimental group was encouraged to continue the walking and exercise program at home after the end of the 12 weeks. At the beginning of the study both the experimental and control group had no statistical differences regarding the level of knee OA severity or other demographic characteristics. The experimental group was re-assessed at three months and six months into the exercise program. The study showed that the experimental group reported significant improvements in the severity of their knee OA, increased functional capacity, decrease in difficulty performing ADLs, decreased pain, and improved overall quality of life.

All three of the articles provided evidence that walking can improve the health of the elderly population by increasing respiratory function, elevating mood, decreasing resting pulse rate, decreasing blood pressure, decreasing pain and improving the overall quality of life for people with osteoarthritis of the knee. Walking is a simple, inexpensive form of exercise that can be adopted by both active and sedentary individuals to improve their health. Further research focusing solely on walking and the older adult population is needed to prove that walking alone provides these health benefits.

References

Dias, R. C., Ramos, L. R. (2003). Impact of an Exercise and Walking Protocol on Quality of Life for Elderly People with OA of the Knee. Physiotherapy Research International, 8(3), 121-130

Shin, Y. (1999). The Effects of a Walking Exercise Program on Physical Function and Emotional State of Elderly Korean Women. Public Health Nursing, 16(2), 146-154

Watsford, M. L., Murphy, A.J., Pine, M. J., Coutts, A. J. (2005). The Effect of Habitual Exercise on Respiratory-Muscle Function in Older Adults. Journal of Aging and Physical Activity, 13, 34-44