Abstract: Square-Stepping Exercise (SSE), composed of movements similar to walking, involves varied movements in multiple directions and is performed on a thin mat (100 x 250 cm) that is partitioned into 40 squares (25 cm each). We introduced SSE to a group of older adults for three months as a supervised intervention. After this intervention period, the participants continued SSE without supervision for four years. The current study was conducted to determine why the participants independently continued SSE.
Abstract: The strength of the relationship of environment to physical activity may differ by age group. Older adults were expected to be more affected by environmental attributes than younger adults. The present study examined age-related differences in associations between perceived neighborhood environment and physical activity.
Abstract: Decreased fitness of the lower extremities is a potentially modifiable fall risk factor. This study aimed to compare two exercise programs--square-stepping exercise (SSE), which is a low-cost indoor program, and walking--for improving the fitness of the lower extremities.
Abstract: Feasible and lowcost exercise programmes targeting fall risk factors may decrease the risk of falling in older adults. The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of square-stepping exercise (SSE) training, which is a new and low-cost method designed to improve lower-extremity functional fitness, with strength and balance (SB) training.
Abstract: Blood lipid levels are determined by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Higher than average values of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-cholesterol) have been observed in people of Japanese ethnicity. The aim of this study was to investigate whether Japanese immigrants to Brazil and subsequent generations maintain the protective benefits associated with higher levels of HDL-cholesterol, and to examine the potential associations between HDL-cholesterol and a variety of other blood lipids, anthropometric and lifestyle factors. Healthy men and women aged 35 years and older who were Native Japanese (n = 198) or Japanese-Brazilians (JB) living in São Paulo, Brazil (n = 198) and in some Japanese cities (n = 246) were investigated. Anthropometric variables, blood lipids including HDL-cholesterol, and lifestyle factors were assessed. Serum HDL-cholesterol was observed to be lower for JB in São Paulo (both women and men) compared with Natives and JB in Japan. Among the groups, triglycerides, waist circumference, LDL-cholesterol, meat intake, stress, and smoking were observed to be independently negatively associated with HDL-cholesterol, whereas total cholesterol, fish intake, and physical activity were positively associated. Lower levels of HDL-cholesterol among both men and women of JB in São Paulo compared with both other groups were confirmed even after lifestyle adjustments. Our findings highlight the significantly lower levels of HDL-cholesterol among Japanese-Brazilians living in São Paulo city compared to Japanese-Brazilians and Native Japanese residing in Japan. Although several lifestyle factors were found to be significantly associated with HDL-cholesterol, they cannot adequately explain the role of the Brazilian cultural environment on HDL-cholesterol levels.
Abstract: The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of different cultural environments on the development of obesity by examining the association of central obesity, lifestyle, and selected coronary risk factors among people with identical Japanese genetic backgrounds living in Japan and Brazil. One hundred and four native Japanese and 286 Japanese-Brazilians residing in Brazil and Japan aged 35 years or over were studied. Obesity, metabolic risk factors for coronary disease, and history of regular sports activity, daily physical activity, and eating habits were assessed. The results showed Japanese-Brazilians residing in Brazil with significantly higher waist circumference values, and greater prevalence of central obesity compared to native Japanese and Japanese-Brazilians residing in Japan. The risk of developing central obesity was found to be 2.8 times higher among Japanese-Brazilians residing in Brazil. However, this association was no longer found to be significant after adjusting for lifestyle factors in the logistic model. Additionally, waist circumference was found to be significantly associated with metabolic risk factors for coronary disease. These findings suggest substantial variation in measures of central obesity among the three groups of Japanese ancestry, and underscore the heterogeneity of risk factors among communities of Japanese ancestry living in different cultural environments. The results also suggest that immigrant men exposed to the Brazilian cultural environment are more susceptible to the development of central obesity, and it seems to be associated with various lifestyle items and metabolic risk factors for coronary disease.
Abstract: This study investigated the prevalence of risk factors associated with the metabolic syndrome (MetSyn) among individuals of Japanese descent exposed to different cultural environments.
Abstract: This study evaluated the effects of exercise frequency on functional fitness in older women participating in a 12-week exercise program. Participants (67.8+/-4.6 years) were divided into three different exercise groups (I, II, and III; n=34) and a control group (Group C; n=11). Group I participated in a 90-min exercise program once a week, for 12 weeks, while Group II attended it twice a week, and Group III attended three times a week. The exercise program consisted of a 10-min warm-up, 20 min of walking, 30 min of recreational activities, 20 min of resistance training, and a 10-min cool-down. The following items were measured before and after the program: muscular strength, muscular endurance, dynamic balance, coordination, and cardiorespiratory fitness (6-min walking distance). Comparisons of baseline and post-intervention measures showed significantly greater improvements in body weight, coordination, and cardiorespiratory fitness for Group III compared to the other groups (p<0.05). In addition, the greatest improvements in body fat, muscular endurance, and dynamic balance were also observed in Group III (p<0.05). However, no significant differences were found in muscular strength. Older women who participate in an exercise program three times a week gain greater functional fitness benefits than those who exercise less frequently. In order to improve functional fitness in older women, an exercise frequency of at least three times each week should be recommended.
Abstract: The Japan Society for the Study of Obesity originally proposed a cutoff value of >100 cm(2) for the intra-abdominal fat area (IFA) as a definition for "visceral fat obesity" in Japanese adults. There are no studies on the cutoff or target values after weight reduction in pre- and post-menopausal women.
Abstract: The purpose of this prospective population-based study was to examine the combined effects of motor speed and knee extension strength on risk of fall-related bone fractures in elderly individuals over a 10-year period.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to determine the efficacy of rate of perceived exertion (RPE) to monitor exercise intensity in older adults. Middle-aged (46.9 +/- 7.0 years, n = 24) and older women (75.5 +/- 3.8 years, n = 29) performed a graded maximal exercise test on a cycle ergometer while RPE, oxygen uptake, heart rate, and blood lactate levels were measured. The Pearson's product moment correlation coefficient between RPE and oxygen uptake for each stage of the graded exercise test was calculated for each participant. The mean coefficient for the older group (r =.954) was similar to that of middle-aged group (r =.963). The autocorrelation coefficient was much lower (r =.411) in the older group than in the middle-aged group (r =.871). Variability in RPE through the graded exercise test was similar between the two groups. In conclusion, RPE was strongly associated with oxygen uptake in the older group. These results indicate that RPE is effective in monitoring exercise intensity in older adults.
Abstract: The goal of this study was to determine an intraabdominal fat (IF) area target value for improving coronary heart disease (CHD) risk factors in response to weight reduction.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine whether activities parallel to daily living (APDL) constitute a determinant index of cardiorespiratory fitness in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Abstract: The relationship between functional fitness status and life satisfaction was assessed in older Japanese people from the perspective of quality of life (QOL). A total of 123 older men and women (M = 74.3 years, SD = 5.4) participated in the study. The questionnaire contained 21 questions covering eight structural factors pertaining to the feelings of life satisfaction in older people. The functional fitness test consisted of nine items representing the following five areas of fitness: muscular strength, agility, coordination, balance, and flexibility. The analysis revealed no overall correlation between the total fitness and the total life satisfaction scores, but some of the life satisfaction factors were significantly related to some functional fitness items (P < .01). The results suggest it is important for older people to maintain their functional fitness in order to manage a high quality of life.
Abstract: Functional fitness age (FFA), which we previously described, is a measure of functional age that reflects a person's overall physical ability to complete daily tasks such as preparing meals and performing various household chores. The purpose of this study was to validate FFA in two elderly populations: 1) older subjects from different communities, and 2) older subjects participating in an exercise intervention program. FFA was calculated from 4 performance tests: performing arm curls; moving beans with chopsticks; demonstrating functional reach; and sitting and walking around two cones. The first study group was selected from 4 different communities (N=127), and was subdivided into a less active group (N=87) and an active group (N=40). The results of the 4 tests for the less active group were not significantly different from those for the original validation group used in developing the FFA equation. The FFA of the less active group (71.1+/-7.7 yrs) was not different from their chronological age (70.4+/-6.6 yrs). In the active group, except for the arm curls, test scores were significantly higher than those of the original validation group. The FFA of the active group (66.2+/-5.1 yrs) was significantly younger than their chronological age (70.9+/-4.2 yrs). Another group of 14 older women (79.5+/-3.9 yrs) was recruited for pre- and post-training testing. After the 3-month exercise program, they showed significant improvements in sitting and walking around two cones and functional reach; their FFA decreased significantly from 81.5+/-5.0 yrs to 78.3+/-4.5 yrs. The control group selected from the same community (N=16, 79.8+/-5.3 yrs) showed no significant changes in the 4 performance tests, and their FFA remained unchanged. These results indicate that our FFA is highly cross-validated for different Japanese communities, and is sensitive to changes associated with participation in an exercise intervention program.
Abstract: Our aim was to develop an age scale for the assessment of functional fitness in older women. The subjects were 430 older Japanese ambulatory women. They were divided into three groups: (a) less active (N=373, age 72.5+/-6.7 years); (b) active (N=23, age 71.0+/-5.4 years); and (c) sedentary (N=34, age 72.9+/-4.7 years). The less active group was used for the development of the instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) age equation, while data from active and sedentary groups were utilized for the assessment of the criterion-related validity. Seventeen functional fitness variables were selected as test items related to IADL. IADL were defined as extra activities people engaged in during daily living, such as preparing meals, housecleaning activities, and washing. After applying the first principal component analysis to the correlation matrix among the 17 items, the following IADL age equation was obtained: IADL age = - 0.43X1 - 0.57X2 - 0.32X3 + 0.37X4 + 0.37CA + 61.88, where X1 = arm curl (n / 30 s), X2 = moving beans with chopsticks (n / 30 s), X3 = functional reach (cm), X4 = walking around two cones (s), and CA = chronological age (years). The mean IADL age of the less active group (72.2+/-8.4 years) obtained from this equation was matched with their mean CA. The mean IADL age of the active group (66.0+/-3.2 years) was significantly lower than their mean CA (71.0+/-5.4 years, p<0.05), and the mean IADL age of the sedentary group (79.1+/-6.0 years) was significantly higher than their mean CA (72.9+/-4.7 years, p<0.05). In conclusion, the criterion-related validity of the IADL age equation was clearly demonstrated as a means to assess the functional fitness required for IADL in older Japanese women.
Abstract: We attempted to determine the effectiveness of exercise prescription for women with hyperlipidemia (HL), because some HL women showed no significant improvement in serum lipid and lipoprotein profiles despite the continuation of exercise conditioning. We therefore tested the hypothesis that exercise can be clinically beneficial even when there are no alterations in total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLC), and/or triglycerides (TG). Twenty-three women with HL (aged 54.3 +/- 7.6 yr) participated in our outpatient-supervised exercise conditioning program for 90 minutes each session, twice a week for 1 year, and also did home-based exercise three days a week. Vital age (VA) is a useful index for assessing functional status, especially the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) and is computed from 11 independent variables measured not only when a person is at rest but also during exercise. Although TC and LDLC did not change significantly after the exercise conditioning, TG decreased significantly (P < 0.05). Furthermore, when we computed the corrected VA (VAc) assuming no changes in TC, LDLC, and TG, VAc was found to decrease significantly from 64.0 +/- 9.9 yr to 58.4 +/- 9.0 yr (P < 0.05). In conclusion, these results indicate the effectiveness of exercise conditioning on risk of CHD in HL women, irrespective of alterations in the concentrations of serum lipid and lipoprotein.
