Do Successful Agers Live Longer? The Vitality 90+ Study. (February 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Nosraty, Lily; Enroth, Linda; Raitanen, Jani; Hervonen, Antti; Jylhä, Marja
• Is Part Of: Journal of aging and health. Volume 27:Number 1(2015:Feb.)
• Page Start: 35
• Page End: 53
• Publication Date: 2015-02
• Subjects: survival -- nonagenarians -- longevity -- health -- well-being; Older people -- Health and hygiene -- Periodicals; Geriatrics -- Periodicals; 618.97
• DOI: 10.1177/0898264314535804
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0898-2643

Abstract

Objective: To discover whether successful aging, understood as a multidimensional concept, predicts further survival in very old people.Method: The population sample consisted of 1, 370 persons aged 90 or over in the Vitality 90+ study. Four alternative models of successful aging were constructed, each of them consisting of physical, psychological, and social dimensions. Mortality was followed up after 4 and 7 years.Results: Three out of four models significantly predicted survival at both follow-ups for the whole group. Separately, "success" in the physical, psychological, and social components was also associated with higher survival. The associations were stronger in women than in men.Discussion: Successful aging, measured using physical, psychological, and social dimensions, predicts the length of future life in nonagenarians.