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A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Aging".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2023) | Viewed by 15666

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Hiroshi Murayama

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Guest Editor

Research Team for Social participation and Community Health, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, Tokyo 173-0015, Japan
Interests: public health; social epidemiology; gerontology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Japan, which is experiencing a rapidly aging trend, not only has the longest life expectancy but also the longest healthy life expectancy in the world. Diverse findings and lessons from Japan could provide significant implications to other nations: for example, interventions to senior individuals (e.g., prevention of disease, dementia, and frailty), institutions and policies (e.g., universal health coverage system, long-term care insurance system), and community development (e.g., age-friendly community, dementia-friendly community).

This Special Issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH) is devoted to making a substantial contribution to knowledge accumulation about healthy aging strategies from Japan. We welcome manuscripts from various academic fields related to gerontology, for instance, public health, medicine, nursing, social welfare, sociology, psychology, and economics. We also encourage intervention study, case reports, and review as well as an observational study.

Dr. Hiroshi Murayama
Guest Editor

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Keywords

healthy aging
health promotion
care prevention
frailty
dementia
health administration
health policy
community development
Japan

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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10 pages, 479 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Associations of Cooking Skill with Social Relationships and Social Capital among Older Men and Women in Japan: Results from the JAGES

by Yukako Tani, Takeo Fujiwara and Katsunori Kondo

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(5), 4633; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20054633 - 6 Mar 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2437

Abstract

The health benefits of social relationships and social capital are well known. However, little research has examined the determinants of social relationships and social capital. We examined whether cooking skill was associated with social relationships and social capital in older Japanese people. We used 2016 Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study data on a population-based sample of men and women aged ≥ 65 years (n = 21,061). Cooking skill was assessed using a scale with good validity. Social relationships were evaluated by assessing neighborhood ties, frequency and number of meetings with friends, and frequent meals with friends. Individual-level social capital was evaluated by assessing civic participation, social cohesion, and reciprocity. Among women, high-level cooking skill was positively associated with all components of social relationships and social capital. Women with high-level cooking skill were 2.27 times (95% CI: 1.77–2.91) more likely to have high levels of neighborhood ties and 1.65 (95% CI: 1.20–2.27) times more likely to eat with friends, compared with those with middle/low-level cooking skill. Cooking skills explained 26.2% of the gender difference in social relationships. Improving cooking skills may be key to boosting social relationships and social capital, which would prevent social isolation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Healthy Aging in Japan)

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9 pages, 890 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Patterns of Changes in Respiratory Muscle Strength over 1 Year in Non-Sarcopenia, Sarcopenia, and Severe Sarcopenia

by Yohei Sawaya, Tamaki Hirose, Masahiro Ishizaka, Takahiro Shiba, Ryo Sato, Akira Kubo and Tomohiko Urano

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(24), 16571; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192416571 - 9 Dec 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1962

Abstract

In this prospective longitudinal cohort study, we explored the characteristics of older people with lower respiratory muscle strength, according to sarcopenia severity, over the course of 1 year. The maximum expiratory pressure (MEP), grip strength, walking speed, and skeletal muscle mass index of 58 participants (28 men, 30 women; mean age, 76.9 ± 7.7 years) were measured at baseline and at the 1-year follow-up. Participants were classified into a decreased MEP group (n = 29; MEP decreased by ≥10% after 1 year) and a non-decreased MEP group (n = 29; MEP decreased by <10%). Sarcopenia status in the mild direction at baseline was significantly associated with MEP decline after one year. Repeated two-way analysis of variance showed significant main effects of measurement time (p < 0.001) and severity of sarcopenia (p = 0.026), as well as a significant interaction effect (p = 0.006). Surprisingly, MEP decreased significantly in the non-sarcopenia and sarcopenia groups, but not in the severe sarcopenia group. Thus, individuals without sarcopenia and those with moderate sarcopenia at baseline are predisposed to MEP decline and should be closely monitored for signs of such decline and associated adverse events. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Healthy Aging in Japan)

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10 pages, 697 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Complex Multimorbidity and Working beyond Retirement Age in Japan: A Prospective Propensity-Matched Analysis

by Daisuke Kato, Ichiro Kawachi and Naoki Kondo

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(11), 6553; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19116553 - 27 May 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1959

Abstract

Background: With the aging of populations worldwide, the extension of people’s working lives has become a crucial policy issue. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of complex multimorbidity (CMM) as a predictor of working status among retirement-aged adults in Japan. Methods: Using a nationwide longitudinal cohort study of people aged over 65 who were free of documented disability at baseline, we matched individuals with respect to their propensity to develop CMM. The primary outcome of the study was working status after the six-year follow-up. Results: Among 5613 older adults (mean age: 74.2 years) included in the study, 726 had CMM and 2211 were still working at the end of the follow-up. In propensity-matched analyses, the employment rate was 6.4% higher in the CMM-free group at the end of the six-year follow-up compared to the CMM group (725 pairs; 29.5% vs. 35.9%; p = 0.012). Logistic regression analysis showed that CMM prevented older people from continuing to work beyond retirement age and was a more important factor than socioeconomic factors (income or educational attainment) or psychological factors (depressive symptoms or purpose in life). Conclusions: Our study found that CMM has an adverse impact on the employment rate of older adults in Japan. This finding suggests that providing appropriate support to CMM patients may extend their working lives. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Healthy Aging in Japan)

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10 pages, 554 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Influence of “Face-to-Face Contact” and “Non-Face-to-Face Contact” on the Subsequent Decline in Self-Rated Health and Mental Health Status of Young, Middle-Aged, and Older Japanese Adults: A Two-Year Prospective Study

by Yoshinori Fujiwara, Kumiko Nonaka, Masataka Kuraoka, Yoh Murayama, Sachiko Murayama, Yuta Nemoto, Motoki Tanaka, Hiroko Matsunaga, Koji Fujita, Hiroshi Murayama and Erika Kobayashi

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(4), 2218; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19042218 - 16 Feb 2022

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4836

Abstract

This study aims to identify the independent influence of face-to-face contact (FFC) and non-face-to-face contact (NFFC) on the subsequent decline in self-rated health and mental health status by age. A total of 12,000 participants were randomly selected among residents in the study area, and 1751 of them responded to both the 2016 and 2018 mail surveys. The participants were subsequently classified into three age groups (25–49: Young adults; 50–64: Mid-aged adults; and 65–84: Older adults). Social contact was assessed by computing the frequencies of FFC and NFFC. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed the risk of social contact on the decline in self-rated health and World Health Organization-Five Well-Being Index. Both FFC and NFFC were significantly associated with maintaining mental health; however, the impacts of FFC on mental health were more significant than that of NFFC among older adults and young adults. Compared with the no contact group, FFC was significantly associated with maintaining self-rated health in mid-aged adults. The influence of FFC and NFFC on health differed by age group. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Healthy Aging in Japan)

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Review

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15 pages, 591 KiB

Open AccessReview

Medical Telemonitoring for the Management of Hypertension in Older Patients in Japan

by Takeshi Fujiwara, James P. Sheppard, Satoshi Hoshide, Kazuomi Kario and Richard J. McManus

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(3), 2227; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20032227 - 26 Jan 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3370

Abstract

Hypertension is the most frequent modifiable risk factor associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Even in older people, strict blood pressure (BP) control has been recommended to reduce CVD event risks. However, caution should be exercised since older hypertensive patients have increased physical vulnerability due to frailty and multimorbidity, and older patients eligible for clinical trials may not represent the general population. Medical telemonitoring systems, which enable us to monitor a patient’s medical condition remotely through digital communication, have become much more prevalent since the coronavirus pandemic. Among various physiological parameters, BP monitoring is well-suited to the use of such systems, which enable healthcare providers to deliver accurate and safe BP management, even in the presence of frailty and/or living in geographically remote areas. Furthermore, medical telemonitoring systems could help reduce nonadherence to antihypertensive medications and clinical inertia, and also enable multi-professional team-based management of hypertension. However, the implementation of medical telemonitoring systems in clinical practice is not easy, and substantial barriers, including the development of user-friendly devices, integration with existing clinical systems, data security, and cost of implementation and maintenance, need to be overcome. In this review, we focus on the potential of medical telemonitoring for the management of hypertension in older people in Japan. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Healthy Aging in Japan)

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