Epidemiologic Studies on Exercise, Self-perception, and Social Interactions by the Elderly - Characterization of Nonparticipating Individuals in the Care Prevention Project

The purpose of this study was to identify the characteristics of elderly people requiring preventative　healthcare and factors associated with their　participation in preventative healthcare program. We　classified 339 individuals（149 participating in preventative　care projects and 190 eligible non-participating）into three groups, 1）participants 2）active　lifestyle nonparticipants（AL-NP）3）minimally　active lifestyle nonparticipants（ML-NP）by health　status and lifestyle activities and compared their　characteristics. The ML-NP group exhibited lower　levels of all test parameters, suggesting they were　at increased risk for requiring care. The factors associated　with the ML-NP group were, for females,　histories of falls and not engaged in agricultural　work, and for males, low self-perceived health, no　habitual alcohol use, and not engaged in agricultural　work. These results indicate the importance of pro-actively intervening in providing care for the　program’s nonparticipants, and taking into account　factors specific to their circumstances.