Publications by authors named "Ilona I McMullan"

Improving the capacity for physical activity interventions to maintain behavior change is a key public health concern and an important strategy for the health and independence of older adults. Ways of ensuring effective maintenance of physical activity levels in older adults are unclear. This study includes the objective measure of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA); self-reported self-efficacy; and self-regulation at four timepoints (baseline, intervention completion at 4 months, 12-, and 18-month follow-up) from the SITLESS study, a clinical trial conducted with a cohort of community-dwelling older adults (≥65 years) from Denmark, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

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Social relationships are central to the health and well-being of older adults. Evidence exploring the association of physical activity (PA) with social isolation and loneliness is limited. This study uses a path analysis to investigate the longitudinal association between loneliness and social isolation with PA using the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing.

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Research suggests that physical activity (PA) has many health benefits for an aging population. Evidence exploring the association between PA and vision is limited. This study includes the measures of self-reported PA (International Physical Activity Questionnaire) and self-rated vision at three points in time over a 6-year period used in the Irish Longitudinal study of Ageing, a cohort of community-dwelling older adults (50 years or older).

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Article Synopsis
  • Sedentary behavior (SB) is linked to negative health outcomes across various age groups, prompting the need for effective interventions that target this issue.
  • A systematic review and meta-analysis assessed 77 adult studies and 84 children studies, revealing that while adults showed non-significant reductions in SB compared to active controls, significant reductions were seen when compared to inactive controls; in children, relevant reductions in daily sedentary time were observed in both short-term and medium-to-long-term interventions against inactive controls.
  • The study indicates that while complexity in interventions may be necessary to tackle SB effectively, a higher complexity does not guarantee sustained long-term behavioral changes.
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Objective: Falls due to poor balance can cause injury, disability, and death in older adults. The relationship between free-living physical activity (PA) and balance over time is poorly understood. The aim of this study is to explore the association between PA and balance in older adults over time.

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Aims: Fall prevention is an important health consideration for older adults. The benefits of moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) for fall prevention are well established. Few studies have explored the association between low intensity physical activity (LPA) and fall risk in older adults over time.

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Article Synopsis
  • Social relationships are crucial for the health and well-being of older adults, but the connection between physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior (SB), and feelings of loneliness or social isolation needs more research.
  • This study analyzed objective measurements of PA and SB alongside self-reported feelings of loneliness and social engagement from older adults in Europe.
  • Findings indicated that higher levels of SB were linked to increased social isolation; however, PA did not show a relationship with social isolation, and neither PA nor SB significantly predicted feelings of loneliness in this population.
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Background: Poor balance is associated with an increased risk of falling, disability and death in older populations. To better inform policies and help reduce the human and economic cost of falls, this novel review explores the effects of free-living physical activity on balance in older (50 years and over) healthy community-dwelling adults.

Methods: Search methods: CENTRAL, Bone, Joint and Muscle Trauma Group Specialised register and CDSR in the Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsychINFO, and AMED were searched from inception to 7th June 2016.

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