Biomedical subjects

D L Wingard

Publications and source records attributed to D L Wingard.

93 records · Page 6Linked to original sources

PubMedDate not supplied

Exercise patterns in a population of older adults.

Little is known about the extent to which older adults engage in exercise, despite recent enthusiasm for exercise among people of all ages. This report describes the exercise patterns in a well-defined population of older adults living in southern California. From 1984 through 1987, we asked 1,140 members of a previously defined adult community 50-93 years of age to report the frequency and duration of participation in 14 leisure-time activities in the two weeks preceding a physical examination. Exercises were categorized as light, moderate, or heavy according to a previously validated scale. Interviewers ascertained information on chronic disease history, cigarette smoking, physical and emotional functioning, and self-rated health. More than 90% of the group reported some physical activity in the two-week period before their evaluation. While the rates of moderate and heavy exercise decreased with age, rates of participation in and duration of light exercise actually increased. Walking was the most common form of exercise reported and was positively associated with other exercise: walkers were more likely to engage in nearly every form of exercise ascertained by the questionnaire than were nonwalkers. Of those who walked or engaged in moderate or heavy exercise, nearly 60% did so three times a week for at least 20 minutes a time. Exercise frequency was lower in those with a history of chronic disease, obesity, or current cigarette smoking, and exercise was positively associated with physical and emotional functioning and self-rated health. These data illustrate that older adults can and do exercise late into life.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Health among older women in the United States.

In the United States, women live longer than men, and they have lower death rates at virtually every age and for most causes of death. The sex differential in mortality has been increasing since the early 1900s, especially for those 15-24 and 55-64 years of age. Since 1970, however, that trend has slowed for persons 45-74, and for the first time, the sex differential among those 55-64 was actually smaller in 1980 than in 1970. While women have lower age-specific death rates than men for most causes of death, among adults 65 years old and older, the leading causes of death are the same for men and women: heart disease, cancer, and stroke. Despite their continuing mortality advantage, women generally experience more illness than men. They report more self-perceived poor health up to age 60. It has been frequently suggested that women may be more willing to acknowledge and report illness than men. Sex differences in illness among the elderly persist, however, when physical examinations are used for assessment of population-based samples. Injuries, one of the few conditions more common among men, are more common among women after age 55. Among the elderly, women appear to have more conditions that are disabling, such as arthritis, while men have more life-threatening conditions, such as heart disease. Women also use more health services than men, and they are institutionalized more frequently in their later years. Future health service planning must take into consideration women's greater health service needs. Future research needs to determine why women have more illness than men and whether women's greater life expectancy is associated with a greater active life expectancy, or if they are merely experiencing more years of disability and dependency.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMedDate not supplied

DES awareness and exposure: the 1994 California Behavioral Risk Factor Survey.

INTRODUCTION: Diethylstilbestrol (DES), a drug used in millions of pregnancies between 1938 and 1971, is the first known human transplacental carcinogen. DES is also associated with other serious health problems for those exposed to it either in utero or while pregnant; however, many men and women are unaware of their exposure or how to protect their health. This first population-based study of DES awareness is part of the National Cancer Instututes's National DES Education Program. METHODS: In 1994, 2,077 women and 1,625 men 23 years of age and over responded to the California Behavioral Risk Factor Survey (BRFS). These subjects were either born during the years DES was in use (men and women 23-53 years old in 1994) or could have been pregnant during those years (women 39 years or older). RESULTS: Analyses weighted to the 1994 California age and ethnicity distribution indicate that only 43% of women and 22% of men had over heard of DES (P < .001). Although 44% of Caucasians had heard of DES, only 10% of Hispanics, 27% of African Americans, and 24% of other races had heard of DES. Within each group, women had heard of DES significantly more often than men. Only 17% of women and 5% of men had ever tried to confirm whether they were exposed to DES in utero, and 8% of women whether they were exposed while pregnant. CONCLUSIONS: Given the serious health consequences of DES exposure and available prevention strategies, this lack of awareness warrants an immediate educational effort.

Adult↗