Evaluation of Exercise Benefits to Promote Health Aging Among Chronically Ill Geriatrics in a Community

• International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) [ Time Frame: three years ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
  Level of self-reported physical activity assessed with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire,IPAQ and expressed as MET-minutes.
  
  

• Body composition measurement [ Time Frame: three years ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
  Body composition refers to the amount of relative fat to muscle you have in your body, which the items include height (cm), weight(kg), body mass index (BMI), muscle mass(kg), fat (%), fat mass, fat free mass (FFM), and total body water (TBW).
  
  
• The physical fitness assessment [ Time Frame: three years ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]

  The physical fitness designed to evaluate several components of functional fitness was as follows:

  30-second chair stand test: Count the times that person rises in 30-s without pushing off with the arms.

  Chair sit and reach: Measure the distance with an 20-cm ruler that a person is short of reaching the toe (minus score) or beyond the toe (plus score).

  2-minute step test: Determine the times that person can step in place, raising (Alternate test) the knees to a height halfway between the iliac crest and middle of the patella, in 2-min.

  Back scratch: Measure the distance between (or the overlap of) the middle fingers behind the back when trying to touch the middle fingers of both hands together behind the back.

  8-foot up and go: Measure the time it takes to get out of a chair, walk 8-feet to and around a cone, and return to the chair.

  
  

This study is divided into three years. The aim of the first year is to analyze the types and percentage of chronic illness in middle- and old-aged population in communities and the impact on their physical and mental function. The Second year, we will use proper exercise prescriptions with exercise equipment available for chronic illness population and examine the improvement of their physical and mental functions after exercise intervention. The third year, we will adopt the concept of social marketing to promote knowledge about health-related fitness and exercise to communities and help to establish exercise center. To chronic illness people, the study seeks to delay the progression of disease and disability by encouraging them to participate in prescribed exercises. To relatively healthy people, exercise can achieve the purposes of healthy aging, decreased chronic illness, and improved ADLs function and life quality.