Daily physical activity impact in old women bone density and grip strength.

INTRODUCTION Being physically active is related to a better physical functioning in older people, but daily physical activity impact in specific outcomes such as osteoporosis or sarcopenia is still not clear. OBJECTIVE The main objective of this study is to determine the impact of daily physical activity (DPA) in the bone mineral density and grip strength of old women. The secondary objective is to distinguish between weekday and weekend day scores. METHODS Forty-two women between 65 and 79 years participated. DPA was monitored with the accelerometer ActiGraph GT3X (Pensacola, FL, USA) placed on the dominant hand wrist. Bone mineral density was measured with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (AccuDEXA, SHICK, USA) in the central finger of the dominant hand; and grip strength, with a Takei dynamometer (TKK 5001). RESULTS There were statistical differences between moderate and vigorous DPA in age, T-score, physical activity counts/min and min/day, and grip strength. Weekend minutes correlated significantly with all the variables. Age was a confounding factor. CONCLUSIONS Higher DPA intensities accomplished by our old women sample preserve T-score (bone standard deviations respect to young, healthy people) and grip strength in a normal range. These results are strongly influenced by weekend scores. Age should be controlled by shorter ranks.