Associations between lifestyle factors and multidimensional frailty: a cross-sectional study among community-dwelling older people

Abstract

Background Multidimensional frailty, including physical, psychological, and social components, is associated to disability, lower quality of life, increased healthcare utilization, and mortality. In order to prevent or delay frailty, more knowledge of its determinants is necessary; one of these determinants is lifestyle. The aim of this study is to determine the association between lifestyle factors smoking, alcohol use, nutrition, physical activity, and multidimensional frailty. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted in two samples comprising in total 45,336 Dutch community-dwelling individuals aged 65 years or older. These samples completed a questionnaire including questions about smoking, alcohol use, physical activity, sociodemographic factors (both samples), and nutrition (one sample). Multidimensional frailty was assessed with the Tilburg Frailty Indicator (TFI). Results Higher alcohol consumption, physical activity, healthy nutrition, and less smoking were associated with less total, physical, psychological and social frailty after controlling for effects of other lifestyle factors and sociodemographic characteristics of the participants (age, gender, marital status, education, income). Effects of physical activity on total and physical frailty were up to considerable, whereas the effects of other lifestyle factors on frailty were small. Conclusions The four lifestyle factors were not only associated with physical frailty but also with psychological and social frailty. The different associations of frailty domains with lifestyle factors emphasize the importance of assessing frailty broadly and thus to pay attention to the multidimensional nature of this concept. The findings offer healthcare professionals starting points for interventions with the purpose to prevent or delay the onset of frailty, so community-dwelling older people have the possibility to aging in place accompanied by a good quality of life.

Long-term tea consumption reduces the risk of frailty in older Chinese people: Result from a 6-year longitudinal study

“…The causes of frailty can be multifaceted and include environmental, physical, and nutrient factors ( 7 ). Well-known determinants of frailty are older age, sex (female), lower education, and living without a partner ( 8 ). An unhealthy lifestyle is also an essential determinant of frailty, such as smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, poor dietary habits, and low physical activity ( 9 ).…”

Association between resilience and frailty among Chinese older adults

“…The following covariates were included in this study based on the literature ( 30 – 34 ): age (5-year categories), gender, educational level (under primary school, primary school, junior high school, senior high school and above), marital status [recoded as married and other (including unmarried, divorced, and widowed)], self-rated health [categorized as excellent, good, general, and poor (including poor and very poor)], smoking (never/former/current), drinking (yes/no), fruit intake [≥200 g daily as sufficient ( 35 )], vegetable intake [≥300 g daily as sufficient ( 35 )], and physical activity [≥150 min moderate intensity physical exercise weekly as regular, <150 min weekly as irregular ( 36 )].…”

Patterns of medication management and associated medical and clinical features among home-dwelling older adults: a cross-sectional study in central Portugal

“…Frailty is a geriatric syndrome of multidimensional origin described as a state of greater vulnerability 21,22,23 . Its prevalence among home-dwelling older adults varies from 4% to 59%, with an overall prevalence in the community estimated at near 10% 18,24 .…”

“…Polypharmacy adds to this problem, with the number of medications being the stand-out risk factor 17 , correlated with a decrease in physical function, an increase in adverse drug events, early mortality, falls and hospital length of stay 14,19,20 . Polypharmacy and its associated unfavourable outcomes may also play an important role in frailty syndrome 10 .Frailty is a geriatric syndrome of multidimensional origin described as a state of greater vulnerability 21,22,23 . Its prevalence among home-dwelling older adults varies from 4% to 59%, with an overall prevalence in the community estimated at near 10% 18,24 .…”

“…Despite ageing and its associated multimorbidity, polypharmacy and frailty, older adults can remain at home if their health conditions are well managed, including using an adequate therapeutic regimen based on an interprofessional collaborative approach. This translates as being bene cial not only for the older adult's overall health status but also for the healthcare system's nances [10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21] .…”