It’s clear that being physically active has a variety of benefits for older adults. It is less clear which specific types of activity are most beneficial, and which subgroups of older adults have the most to gain from different forms of exercise. There is a good deal of research on physical activity and aging, but how does this inform practice? What topics are in need of further research? A forthcoming article presents the findings of a survey of 348 experts used to identify which forms of exercise are agreed on, and which need more evidence. These findings can be used to establish a strong research agenda for physical activity and aging.

The researchers developed a web based, “snowball” survey. In a snowball design, researchers recruit an initial wave of participants, who then recommend further participants to the researchers. In this case, the researchers recruited experts by consulting with the Healthy Aging Network, a program of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The researchers chose individuals who were experts on aging and physical activity, and therefore professionally invested in the advancement of the field.

The survey asked participants to identify their professional background, and to assess the strength of the available research evidence on different types of exercise. Survey respondents had an average of 15.6 years of experience in the field, and were mostly involved in research on the efficacy of physical health interventions. Participants were asked to rank different areas of research in terms of priority, and to identify those topics most in need of further research.

According to the survey respondents, aerobic exercise and walking have the strongest evidence for their use. Resistance exercise, such as weightlifting, was rated as having strong evidence by just under half (49.0%) of the participants, while 40.4% rated it as having “moderate” evidence. Flexibility exercise had the lowest amount of perceived research evidence, with just over one third (35.9%) of respondents saying it only has low evidence, compared to 15.5% saying that there is strong evidence for the health benefits of flexibility exercise.

The researchers identified themes for further research in the survey responses. One such theme is the perceived need for more studies on the “dose-response” benefit of exercise—in other words, how much exercise is needed to see a benefit, and how much benefit is there? Another area of need identified by respondents was the practical considerations of implementing and sustaining exercise programs across different groups of older adults. Further topics of concern were how to recruit participants to physical activities, how the physical environment can be used to encourage active aging, and how to develop and promote social policy on active aging. Participants also stated that research needs to be more inclusive of low-income participants, people with physical and intellectual limitations, and minority populations.

This survey identified consensus on the benefits of many forms of physical activity, and identified topics that future research should address. Most experts agree that research strongly supports aerobic activity and walking for older adults, and that resistance exercise has moderate to strong support. More research is needed on the specific benefits of different levels of exercise, and on the development of programs that are beneficial for several sub-populations that are underrepresented in the research literature.

Hughes SL, Leith KH, Marquez DX, et al. Physical activity and older adults: expert consensus for a new research agenda. Gerontologist. 2011. [epub ahead of print]