Research
Randomized trial of exercise in sedentary middle aged women: effects on quality of life
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* Corresponding author: Anne McTiernan amctiern@fhcrc.org
1 Cancer Prevention, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, 1100 Fairview Ave N, Seattle WA 98109, USA
2 Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Alberta, 13-106J Clinical Sciences Building, Edmonton, AB, 6G 2G3, Canada
3 Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard University, 181 Longwood Avenue, Boston MA 02115, USA
4 Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Yale University, PO Box 208034, New Haven CT 06520, USA
5 Health Services Research and Development Center of Excellence, Department of Veterans Affairs, 1100 Olive Way, Suite 1400, Seattle, WA, 98101, USA
6 Department of Internal Medicine, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, 4200 E. 9th Avenue, Campus Box B-179, Denver CO 80262, USA
International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity 2006, 3:34 doi:10.1186/1479-5868-3-34
Published: 4 October 2006Abstract
Increasing physical activity is currently considered to be a possible prevention strategy for cancer, obesity, and cardiovascular disease, either alone or in combination with dietary changes. This paper presents results of a randomized trial of moderate-to-vigorous intensity exercise in middle aged, sedentary women; specifically, we report changes in and correlates of quality of life and functional status of this exercise intervention program for both the short (three months) and longer term (12 months). The intervention group showed a significant increase in Mental Health score from baseline to 3 months (p < .01), significantly greater than the change in the control group at 3 months (p < .01). A similar trend among exercisers was observed for the General Health score (p < .01), and this finding was significantly greater than the change in control group at 3 months (p = .01). Change in Social Support – Affection were predictors of the changes in quality of life variables. This study documented improvements in quality of life and general functioning that occurred as a result of participating in an exercise intervention in sedentary middle-aged women.