TY - JOUR
T1 - The roles of body composition and specific strength in the relationship between race and physical performance in older adults
AU - Chiles Shaffer, Nancy
AU - Simonsick, Eleanor M.
AU - Thorpe, Roland J.
AU - Studenski, Stephanie A.
N1 - Funding Information:
Dr. Thorpe was supported by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (U54MD000214) and the National Institute on Aging (K02AG059140).
Funding Information:
This research was supported by the Intramural Research Program of the National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.
PY - 2020/3/9
Y1 - 2020/3/9
N2 - Background: Socioeconomics may explain black-white differences in physical performance; few studies examine racial differences among socioeconomically similar groups. Performance is also affected by body composition and specific strength, which differ by race. We assessed whether racial differences in physical performance exist among older adults with high education and similar income and whether body composition and specific strength attenuate observed differences. Methods: Cross-sectional analysis of 536 men (18% black) and 576 women (28% black) aged more than 60 years from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging. Body composition was evaluated using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. Specific strength was assessed by quadricep peak torque divided by height-normalized thigh cross-sectional area and grip strength divided by body mass index-normalized appendicular lean mass. Physical performance was assessed using usual gait speed and fast 400 m walk time. Sex-stratified linear regression models, adjusted for age, height, education, and recent income, determined whether body composition or specific strength attenuated associations between race and physical performance. Results: Blacks were younger, with higher weight and appendicular lean mass. Black women had higher percent fat and specific strength. In both sexes, blacks had poorer physical performance after adjustment for socioeconomic factors. In women, neither body composition nor specific strength altered the association with gait speed. In men, neither body composition nor specific strength attenuated racial differences in either performance measure. Conclusions: Poorer physical performance among black compared to white older adults persists among persons with high education and similar income and cannot generally be attributed to differences in body composition or specific strength.
AB - Background: Socioeconomics may explain black-white differences in physical performance; few studies examine racial differences among socioeconomically similar groups. Performance is also affected by body composition and specific strength, which differ by race. We assessed whether racial differences in physical performance exist among older adults with high education and similar income and whether body composition and specific strength attenuate observed differences. Methods: Cross-sectional analysis of 536 men (18% black) and 576 women (28% black) aged more than 60 years from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging. Body composition was evaluated using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. Specific strength was assessed by quadricep peak torque divided by height-normalized thigh cross-sectional area and grip strength divided by body mass index-normalized appendicular lean mass. Physical performance was assessed using usual gait speed and fast 400 m walk time. Sex-stratified linear regression models, adjusted for age, height, education, and recent income, determined whether body composition or specific strength attenuated associations between race and physical performance. Results: Blacks were younger, with higher weight and appendicular lean mass. Black women had higher percent fat and specific strength. In both sexes, blacks had poorer physical performance after adjustment for socioeconomic factors. In women, neither body composition nor specific strength altered the association with gait speed. In men, neither body composition nor specific strength attenuated racial differences in either performance measure. Conclusions: Poorer physical performance among black compared to white older adults persists among persons with high education and similar income and cannot generally be attributed to differences in body composition or specific strength.
KW - Gait
KW - Health disparities
KW - Minority aging
KW - Minority health
KW - Physical function
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U2 - 10.1093/gerona/glz103
DO - 10.1093/gerona/glz103
M3 - Article
C2 - 31825084
AN - SCOPUS:85081199497
SN - 1079-5006
VL - 75
SP - 784
EP - 791
JO - Journals of Gerontology - Series A Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences
JF - Journals of Gerontology - Series A Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences
IS - 4
ER -