Search resultsAlcohol use, physical performance, and functional limitations in older men
Title
Alcohol use, physical performance, and functional limitations in older men
Publication type
Journal Article
Year of Publication
2007
Authors
Journal
Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
Volume
55
Issue
2
Pagination
212 - 220
Date published
2007
ISBN
00028614 (ISSN)
Keywords
Activities of Daily Living, age distribution, Aged, alcohol, alcohol abstinence, alcohol abuse, alcohol consumption, Alcohol Drinking, article, CAGE, climbing, community living, confidence interval, Cross-Sectional Studies, daily life activity, fragility fracture, functional status, Gait, Geriatric Assessment, grip strength, human, Humans, Instrumental activities of daily living (IADL), leg muscle, major clinical study, male, motor performance, Multivariate Analysis, Muscle strength, physical activity, physical disability, physical performance, questionnaire, self report, shopping, statistical analysis, Task Performance and Analysis, United States, walking
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To describe associations between recent alcohol intake, physical performance, and functional limitations in older men. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Six U.S. clinical centers. PARTICIPANTS: Five thousand nine hundred sixty-two men aged 65 and older. MEASUREMENTS: Self-reported functional limitations; problem drinking history (≥2 positive responses on the CAGE questionnaire); history of sustained excessive drinking (history of consumption of ≥5 drinks/day on most days); and alcohol intake categorized by drinks/week (0=abstainers, n=2,116; < 1=intermittent, n=739); 1 to <7= light, n=1,563; 7 to <14=low-moderate, n=848; 14 to <21 =high-moderate, n=459; and ≥21=heavy, n=237). Grip strength, leg power, chair stand, and walking tests were completed during a standard examination. RESULTS: After age adjustment, men with low-moderate or high-moderate intake generally performed 3% to 5% better on physical performance tests than abstainers; heavy drinkers performed similarly to abstainers. These associations lessened yet tended to remain significant after multivariate adjustment. Men with low-moderate alcohol intake had the lowest odds of reporting a limitation in instrumental activities of daily living (multivariate-adjusted odds ratio (OR)=0.52, 95% confidence interval (CI)=0.39-0.69) compared to abstainers; similar odds were seen for high-moderate and heavy use. The association between alcohol intake and self-reported physical limitation was U-shaped, with the highest odds of physical limitation in abstainers (OR=1.0, referent) and heavy users (OR=0.88, 95% CI=0.58-1.36) and the lowest odds in low-moderate users (OR=0.62, 95% CI=0.46-0.95). CONCLUSION: Moderate alcohol intake was associated with modestly better physical performance and lower odds of reporting a functional limitation in older men.