Active ageing and quality of life:Community-dwelling older adults in deprived neighbourhoods

Socioeconomic factors may influence health and quality of life. Older adults residing in deprived neighbourhoods are at risk to develop negative health outcomes with adverse consequences for a person’s quality of life. Therefore, it is crucial to determine feasible and effective ways to maintain or improve quality of life for elderly people living in deprived neighborhoods. The results of the studies presented in this thesis contribute to the knowledge about enhancing active ageing and improving the quality of life for older adults. Insight into ageing-related issues such as frailty, resilience, and quality of life are relevant for developing an appropriate approach to optimize quality of life for older adults, in general, and those living in deprived neighbourhoods. This thesis shows that, even in deprived neighbourhoods, it is possible to recruit sedentary, community-dwelling, older adults and engage them in physical exercise. A community-based approach with attention for group building aspects and community ownership of the project, seem to be essential factors. For these older adults, a group program with weekly exercise sessions on moderate intensity is suitable to improve physical fitness (muscle strength and endurance).This improvement in physical fitness does not directly translate into an improvement in global quality of life, nor did physical fitness have a direct or indirect effect on quality of life. Therefore, a multifactorial approach is recommended to influence the quality of life in older adults