The Role of Functional Fitness in the Relationship between Age and Perceived Health

PURPOSE: To investigate the mediation of flexibility, strength, coordination, and endurance on the physical and mental component of perceived health in old adult (55-64 yrs: n=51) and young old (75-84 yrs: n=41) individuals. METHODS: A functional fitness test battery (chair sit-and-reach, SR; 30-s chair stand, CS; in-phase and anti-phase inter-limb coordination, IP and AP; and 3-min walking, W) and the SF-12 questionnaire (Component Summaries: Physical-PCS, and Mental-MCS) were administered. ANOVA verified differences (p<0.05) between groups and a serial multiple mediator model with four mediators (i.e., flexibility, strength, coordination, and endurance) was applied to the relation between age and MCS. RESULTS: No difference emerged for IP and PCS. The 55-64 yrs individuals showed better values (p<0.05) for SR (2.9±12.4cm), CS (15.6±3.5n), AP (68.5±73.7s), and W (321.4±40.0m) with respect to their older counterparts (SR: -3.8±10.8cm; CS: 14.0±3.5n; AP: 15.2±34.7s; W: 280.0±45.8m). Conversely for MCS, 75-84 yrs individuals showed higher values (48.7±10.7pt) with respect to their younger counterparts (53.5±7.7pt). A negative total (-4.8, p=0.02) and direct effect (-8.4 p<0.01) of age on the MCS component emerged, mediated by the indirect effects of SR-AP (0.5), SR-CS-W (0.2), AP (2.1), and W (1.6). CONCLUSION: The better perceived mental health of 75-84 yrs individuals with respect to their younger counterparts might indicate that they positively negotiated the decline of their functional fitness. Furthermore, the mediating effects of coordination and endurance on the relationship between age and perceived mental health highlighted that these capabilities play a role with advancing age by acting independently and in association with flexibility and strength.