Researchers have discovered that keeping a stable weight for older women comes with interesting life-extending benefits.
Keeping a Stable Weight Can Prolong the Life of Older Women
A multi-institutional study has discovered that older women, who are over 60 years old, who keep a stable body weight have higher chances of reaching their 90th birthdays. The study covered 54,437 women under the Women's Health Initiative study, which started in 1991. This 1991 WHI study focused on health issues faced by postmenopausal women.
The authors discovered that women that went through unintentional weight loss had a 51% lower chance of reaching 90 years old. On the other hand, weight gain amounting to at least 5% was seen to not contribute to remarkable longevity. This then points to how important it is for older women to keep a stable weight.
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Weight Loss, Gain, or Stability
The study aimed to examine links between intentional or unintentional weight chances and remarkable longevity among older women. While earlier studies focused on how weight loss affects early and middle adulthood, these studies did not factor in the intentionality or unintentionally of the weight loss.
The recent study covered women from 61 to 81 years old by the time of the study's enrollment. The women participants gave their information, including their medical conditions, weight, smoking status, and alcohol consumption.
Researchers focused on both long-term and short-term changes in weight among women and compared these figures with the age the women were able to reach. They examined weight chances at the start of the enrollment of the participants and at 3-year and 10-year marks. Women were then categorized into three different groups, namely, stable weight (below 5% change from initial weight), weight gain (over 5% increase from initial weight), and weight loss (over 5% decrease from initial weight).
The women participants were also classified into groups of intentional weight loss and unintentional weight loss by the 3-year mark. This depended on self-reports regarding purposely losing over five pounds.
The study discovered that 53.6% of women who kept a stable weight reached at least 90 years old, while women who had an unintentional weight loss amounting to at least 5% had lesser likelihoods of reaching their 90th birthday.
The authors also noted that women who experienced over 5% weight loss during the 3-year checkup had a 33% decreased likelihood of reaching 90, 35% decreased likelihood of turning 95, and 38% lower likelihood of reaching 100 years old.
Women who intentionally tried to lose weight had a 17% lower chance of reaching 90. Some reasons behind the purposeful weight loss include exercise increases or diet changes.
On the other hand, women who did not purposefully lose weight had a 51% lower chance of reaching 90 years old. Some factors that may have led to this unintentional weight loss include stress and illness.
Weight gain, on the other hand, of over 5% in the 3-year mark was not linked to any heightened survival chances.
According to Professor Aladdin Sadyab, who is from the School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science at the University of California San Diego and who led the study, the findings generally support the importance of maintaining a stable weight for older women. Dr. Jessica Lee, who is an associate geriatrics professor from the UTHealth's McGovern Medical School, explains that the study could affect the medical advice that doctors offer in a clinical setting.
However, the study findings do come with limitations. Dr. Lee explains that the findings may not always apply to specific patients. For instance, an older woman facing obesity or diabetes may still benefit from weight loss to help manage her condition. Registered dietitian Katie Lounsberry also stresses that it is important to consider the individual's case when it comes to weight management.
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