Impact of sports activity on Polish adults: Self-reported health, social capital & attitudes

The impact of preventive behaviors on self-rated health, depression symptoms, and daily functioning among middle-aged and elderly Chinese: An empirical study

INTRODUCTION

With the intensifying issue of an aging population, the health of middle-aged and elderly individuals garners increased attention. Preventive behaviors are pivotal in enhancing life quality and extending healthy living. This study examines the effects of preventive behaviors on self-rated health, depression, and daily functioning among these populations.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Drawing on data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), this research applies a panel ordered probability model to scrutinize the influence of preventive behaviors on health outcomes among middle-aged and elderly populations. It utilizes self-rated health, depression, and daily functioning as pivotal health indicators to assess the effects.

RESULTS

Preventive behaviors exert a significant impact on self-assessed health and daily functioning among middle-aged and elderly populations. Engagement in social activities effectively reduces depression symptoms. Primary preventive measures, including physical and social activities, enhance health outcomes through medical consultations. Conversely, secondary preventive actions, such as undergoing physical examinations, facilitate early detection of diseases, enabling timely intervention and health advisories. It is noteworthy that individuals with higher incomes derive lesser benefits from these physical or social endeavors.

CONCLUSION

Sociodemographic determinants such as age, income, and educational attainment significantly modulate the efficacy of preventive behaviors on the health outcomes of middle-aged and elderly populations. This research underscores the pivotal role of physical examination services within primary healthcare frameworks and advocates for the tailoring of health promotion strategies to the accessible social needs and engagements of economically and educationally disadvantaged seniors.

Active or Passive Aging? Analysis of Selected Socioeconomic Factors in the Polish Population

The aim of this study was to identify the factors that determined the participation of people aged 60 years and older in physical activity (PA) at least once or more frequently in the year before the survey. The analysis included sociodemographic variables, any certificate of disability, level of physical fitness, and declared sports skills. The study used data from the "Participation of Poles in Sports and Physical Recreation in 2012" survey (designed and conducted by Statistics Poland). Questionnaires from 2724 people qualified for analysis. An analysis of frequency and odds ratio (followed by logistic regression analysis) was used to evaluate the determinants of participation of older adults in PA. Participation in PA was declared by 23.7%, most often by older adults aged 60-64 years (chi² = 67.72; p < 0.001). With age, the likelihood of participation in PA declined until the age of 75, when the percentage of active participants increased to 27.4%. Of the variables analyzed (logistic regression model), only very good (p < 0.001) and good (p = 0.002) levels of self-rated physical fitness, secondary (p = 0.014) or tertiary (p = 0.003) education, and a higher number of declared sports skills (p < 0.001) had a favorable effect on the frequency of participation in PA. The low PA of Poles aged 60 years and over (especially those entering retirement age) requires social intervention. Instead of focusing sports policy on increasing the number of participants, it seems more reasonable to focus on individuals living in rural areas with lower socio-professional status and physical fitness. It is necessary to use an individual approach (according to abilities, skill level, and needs) and create systems of interrelations that would provide older adults with support (including the use of social resources).

Self-assessment of the health status and leisure activities of individuals on haemodialysis

Self-assessment of health status is an important marker of social and health aspects. Haemodialysis is an option for renal replacement therapy that alters daily life and impacts social participation and the performance of tasks that give the subject a socially accepted role. In this scenario, leisure activities have the potential to generate well-being and are associated with several aspects of daily life, but few studies have analysed their relationship with the self-assessment of health status. This is a cross-sectional, census study with 1024 individuals from haemodialysis units of a Southeast Brazilian region, with the application of a questionnaire in 2019. We calculated the difference between the proportions of self-assessment of health status (positive and negative) and the two logistic regression models. The chances of individuals on haemodialysis negatively evaluating their health increase when they do not perform artistic leisure activities (OR 2.15; 95% CI 1.35-3.43), physical and sports activities (OR 3.20; 95% CI 1.86-5.52), intellectual (OR 2.21; 95% CI 1.44-3.41), manuals (OR 1.82; 95% CI 1.22-2.72), social (OR 2.74; 95% CI 1.74-4.31), tourist (OR 2.08; 95% CI 1.37-3.17) and idleness and contemplative (OR 1.92; 95% CI 1.29-2.85). Negative health self-assessment is associated with not practicing artistic, manual, physical and sporting, social, intellectual, tourist, and contemplative leisure activities, which have the function of providing social participation and giving meaning to life.

Is the Prevalence of Low Physical Activity among Teachers Associated with Depression, Anxiety, and Stress?

The aim of this study was to analyze the levels of stress, depression, and anxiety among Polish secondary school teachers and their association with selected psychosocial, sociodemographic, and lifestyle factors. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 116 Polish teachers in 2019, using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form (IPAQ-SF), the Depression and Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21), and author questionnaire including psychosocial factors specific to the respondents' work environment. The prevalence of moderately to extremely severe levels of depression, anxiety, and symptoms of stress in teachers was 18.1%, 22.4%, and 51.7%, respectively. Among respondents with moderate or high physical activity level (PAL), normal or mild levels of depression (OR = 3.62; CI [1.31-10.03]), anxiety (OR = 2.61; CI [1.01-6.73]), and stress (OR = 2.79; CI [1.16-6.69]) were more common. The level of individual symptoms of mental disorders was higher than indicated by previous Polish reports. Given that teachers' low PAL is significantly related to their moderately to extremely severe levels of stress, depression, and anxiety, we suggest running leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) enhancement programs and supporting the leadership of school management and the higher-education system in this regard.

Sport Participation and Subjective Outcomes of Health in Middle-Aged Men: A Scoping Review

Although sport participation is intrinsically motivating and improves the physical health of middle-aged men, its influence on subjective health measures, such as health-related quality of life, self-rated health, or well-being is unclear. The purpose of this scoping review was to describe the existing literature that has assessed male sport participants and their subjective health. MEDLINE, Embase, Emcare, PsycInfo, SPORTDiscus, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science were searched, and reference lists of included studies were pearled. Included were original peer-reviewed studies reporting a marker of subjective health in males, 35 to 54 years (average), who participated in sport. The search identified 21 eligible articles, 18 quantitative, 2 mixed-methods, and 1 qualitative, from 13 different countries. Eighteen studies were cross-sectional. A broad range of outcomes were assessed, with the most common being quality of life/health-related quality of life (n = 6) and self-rated health (n = 6). Most studies assessing quality of life, health-related quality of life, or self-rated health demonstrated a positive association with sport participation, while sport participation was not related to measures of life satisfaction, flourishing, happiness or global well-being; however, limited studies examined these latter outcomes. Sport participation appears to be related to better select subjective health outcomes in middle-aged men. However, most available data are cross-sectional and thus causation cannot be determined. Randomized intervention trials are required to determine whether sport participation improves the subjective health of middle-aged men.

Open Science Framework registration:https://osf.io/zypds

Social Capital as a Mediator in the Link between Women's Participation in Team Sports and Health-Related Outcomes

The role of social capital in the association between team sports and health-related outcomes has not been well established in the literature. The purpose of this study was to explore whether social capital components (social support, trust, and social involvement) mediate the association between team sports and health-related outcomes (self-reported health, psychosomatic symptoms, and depressive symptoms). In a cross-sectional research design, we obtained data from 759 participants in the Mamanet Cachibol League, a community team sports model for women in Israel, as well as a comparison group of 308 women who did not participate in any team sports. Team captains were sent a link with an online questionnaire, which were then delivered to team members via text message. Using three parallel mediation models, we found that social support mediated the association between team sports and self-reported health, psychosomatic symptoms, and depressive symptoms. Trust mediated the association between team sports and both psychosomatic symptoms and depressive symptoms. Social involvement was not found to be a mediator in the association between team sports and any of the health-related outcomes. Our findings reveal the important role of social capital, specifically social support and trust, in promoting the health of women who participate in team sports.

Through Sport to Innovation: Sustainable Socio-Economic Development in European Countries

Using clustering and principal component analysis, we demonstrate that—at the national level in Europe—innovativeness correlates strongly to both social capital and participation in sport. In this aspect, countries such as the Scandinavian countries and the countries of Central and Eastern Europe differ visibly. Referring to prior empirical research, we claim that a causal relation between sports, through social capital, and innovativeness can be established. In the context of social capital accumulation, we further discuss the role of sports clubs, often perceived as a socially intensive form of participation in sport, but most likely diminishing in this respect lately.

Does Social Capital Matter for Total Factor Productivity? Exploratory Evidence from Poland

Two issues connected with sustainable development are analysed in this article: total factor productivity (TFP), which measures the efficiency of transforming physical capital and labour into production, and social capital, which is increasingly considered as a factor of TFP. TFP is sometimes viewed as a measure of sustainability, and its high value indicates an effective way of combining and using limited resources. Social capital, in turn, is a determining factor in the social, economic, and environmental dimensions of development. The subject of this analysis is the impact of social capital on TFP. Social capital generates synergistic effects and creates added value using the existing resources. Therefore, it is legitimate to regard it as one of the determinants of TFP. The role of social capital in sustainable development is theoretically grounded and confirmed by numerous empirical studies. Nevertheless, due to the deep dependence on the context, the mechanisms of the impact of this capital on economic effects are still not fully understood. In this paper, social capital is analysed in the context of the post-transformation economy. This context seems to be interesting for two reasons: the relative weakness of social capital in post-communist countries and extensive nature of development these countries have experienced in recent decades, which together can be a barrier to long-term growth in these economies. The purpose of the paper is to identify and assess the impact of social capital in Poland on TFP in a regional breakdown (Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics II - NUTS II). The research period covers the years 2002–2016 and employs econometric modelling methods. Social capital turns out to be a factor in explaining the level of TFP in Polish regions.

Do Sports Clubs Contribute to the Accumulation of Regional Social Capital?

Social capital (SC) affects quality of life, sport behaviours and health in individual and community context. The aim was to analyse how sports activity (SA) contributes to SC accumulation in a post-transformation country. A combination of four longitudinal, nationwide datasets was used. Instrumental variable method was applied. Results show that in 19+ Poles, on a regional level, SA improves SC. This suggest that sports clubs and at least some types of sports infrastructure can constitute a valid tool for social policies aiming at improving social involvement. The self-triggering character of SA is a valuable asset for social impact regionally and beyond. It is important to estimate the changes in a long-term perspective, due to the inertness of the SC.

Leisure-Time Physical Activity Participation Trends 2014-2018: A Cross-Sectional Study in Poland

Objective, the aim is an analysis of sociodemographic factors that had an essential relation with undertaking leisure-time physical activity-LTPA (with particular emphasis on World Health Organization (WHO) health recommendations) by adult Poles from a time-trend perspective. Methods, the paper is based on data retrieved from five large-scale surveys carried out on the representative samples of Poles aged 15-69 in 2014-2018 (n = 7347). In each wave, the Polish long version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire was used. Results, the participation of Poles in LTPA constantly increases (p < 0.001) and the percentage of people meeting the dose of PA required for health recommendations is growing (on average, met by 43.9% of Polish men and 43.5% of women), which indicates a trend of behaviour of citizens of this country. The probability of realisation of WHO norms was determined by sex, age, place of residence and occupational status. Conclusion: it seems reasonable to develop Polish recommendations and guidelines for specific groups, including females and males, those who live in the villages and in the towns, different age groups: children/adolescents, adults (aged 50 to 59-most vulnerable to physical inactivity), the elderly, and various professional groups (especially farmers and physical workers).