Exercise among Aging Persons with Intellectual Disability

Background and Aim: It is well known that while physical activity can directly or indirectly prevent cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, physical inactivity is at an increase among older people in the community. Older persons with intellectual disability have shown in previous studies lower prevalence of heart disease, and we assume this could be related to higher rates of physical activity.

Methods: Our study included 2283 adults over the age of 40 (1108 females and 1174 males) at institutions, with intellectual disability.

Results: 52% of each sex group did not exercise at all, while 2% of each engaged in vigorous exercise, 8.5% of males engaged in moderate exercise compared to 5% of females, and 37% of females compared to 34% of males engaged in moderate exercise.

While exercising was not linearly correlated with age as seen in older adults without disability, it was correlated with level of intellectual disability, Down`s syndrome, cerebral palsy, current health, gender, nationality, and number of years at the institution.

Discussion: The differential needs of different age groups should be compared to help us understand the implications of these results for the populations in the various settings.