Leisure Activities Associated With Functional Impairment Risk Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults With Depressive...

It is important to develop effective support strategies to prevent functional impairment among older adults with depressive symptoms. Participation in leisure activities may help prevent functional impairment. However, it is unclear what types of leisure activities are associated with functional impairment in this population. The purpose of this study was to identify leisure activities associated with future functional impairment among community-dwelling older adults who were not functionally impaired but exhibited depressive symptoms at baseline.

A prospective cohort study was conducted among 1603 community-dwelling older adults exhibiting depressive symptoms. Leisure activities were assessed using a self-administered questionnaire, which covered 24 different activities across eight domains. Participants were followed up for 2 years from baseline assessment to monitor for onset of functional impairment.

Functional impairment was experienced by 15.7% during the 2-year period from baseline. Logistic regression analysis adjusted for confounding factors showed that eating out with friends (odds ratio [OR]: 0.66; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.48-0.92), shopping with friends (OR: 0.70; 95% CI: 0.50-0.97), bicycling (OR: 0.66; 95% CI: 0.45-0.97), travelling (OR: 0.63; 95% CI: 0.44-0.89), attending an event (OR: 0.66; 95% CI: 0.46-0.94) and gardening (OR: 0.72; 95% CI: 0.53-0.99) were associated with a lower risk of functional impairment.

Participation in outdoor leisure activities that combine physical, cognitive and social elements may help prevent functional impairment among older adults with depressive symptoms. These findings can help to develop practical support strategies to improve health and prevent functional impairment among older adults with depressive symptoms.