Abstract
Background
There is increasing evidence to support the benefits of physical activity (PA) on cognition in older adults. This research describes the perspectives of support persons (SPs) of older adults with cognitive impairment, including their beliefs and knowledge about the benefits of PA, the current PA level of their next of kin (NOK), and their preferences for PA programs for their NOK.
Methods
A telephone survey of 213 SPs of older adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) or Alzheimer's dementia (AD) in the Australian Imaging, Biomarkers and Lifestyle Flagship Study of Ageing (aibl) was undertaken. A series of multiple logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the contribution of demographic, diagnostic and health factors to SPs’ perspectives.
Results
The majority of SPs were aware of research showing the benefits of PA for memory (64%) and believed it would be helpful to their NOK (72%). Older SPs were less likely to have heard about these benefits than younger SPs (p=0.016). SPs caring for a male NOK were more likely to believe that PA would be helpful than those caring for a female NOK (p=0.049). AD diagnosis (rather than MCI) (p=0.014), increasing age (p=0.005) and female gender of NOKs (p=0.043) was associated with lower PA levels. SPs were mixed regarding the preference for their NOK to participate in PA individually (45%) or in a group (54%). Many SPs reported that they would like to participate in PA with their NOK (63%).
Conclusions
These findings provide useful data, particularly as they address an area with limited research to date. They suggest the encouraging result that SPs are aware of the benefits of PA. They support a case for older SPs to be specifically targeted with these messages, and for programs to enable them to assist their NOK to be more physically active. The findings also provide guidance to service providers and public health initiatives to include both individual and group PA programs, with the option for SPs to participate. Future research could investigate how to increase motivation and adherence to PA programs, along with knowledge translation around dissemination and application of PA guidelines.