Women in their 40s and 50s urged to stay active to improve their quality of life

(Ivy Shih/ University of Sydney — New research from Charles Perkins Centre and University of Sydney’s School of Public Health finds that for women, consistent adherence to physical activity guidelines throughout mid-age is linked with a higher health-related quality of life.

The study was published today in PLOS Medicine open-access journal.

Lead author Dr Binh Nguyen, from the Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of Sydney said: “Our study shows that it’s important for women to be active throughout mid-age to gain the most benefits for physical health in later life. Ideally, women should increase their activity levels to meet the guidelines by age 55.”

The evidence for an association between physical activity and health-related quality of life has been based primarily on cross-sectional studies and short-term randomized controlled trials. (…)