Healthy aging in a cross-sectional study of Australian men: what has sex got to do with it?

Autor: David J. Handelsman, Veronica Collins, Carol A Holden, Marian Pitts, Damien Jolley
Rok vydání: 2014
Předmět:
Zdroj: The Aging Male. 17:25-29
ISSN: 1473-0790
1368-5538
DOI: 10.3109/13685538.2013.843167
Popis: To identify lifestyle factors associated with healthy aging in middle-aged and older Australian men.A cross-sectional, population-based, computer-assisted telephone interview study explored self-reported health outcomes, and associated determinants for general and reproductive health (the Men in Australia Telephone Survey) in men aged 40 years and older (n = 5990). "Good health" was defined by self-reported health (excellent/very good) combined with absence of self-reported high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and depression symptoms. Categories of sexual activity frequency in the previous four weeks ranged from zero to 12+ times."Good health" declined with increasing age with 17% of men over 70 years reporting "good health". In multivariable logistic regression models, significant inverse associations were found between modifiable lifestyle factors - both underweight and overweight/obesity, physical inactivity, smoking and high alcohol consumption - and "good health". Low-risk alcohol intake and living with a partner were positively associated with "good health". Sexual activity was also positively associated with "good health" (p 0.001) with elevated odds ratios (ORs) for each category of frequency of sexual activity (1-4, 5-8, 9-12 or 12+ times in the past 4 weeks) relative to zero frequency (ORs 1.68 to 2.16).This study suggests that sexual activity is an important correlate of retaining good health in middle- and older-aged men, independent of other behavioral determinants.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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