House chores keeps older adults physically, emotionally fit

Older adults tend to feel emotionally and physically better after tackling house chores because of the exercise it takes to get the job done, according to a new study.
"House cleaning kept them up and moving. A clean environment is therapeutic," said Kathy D Wright at the Case Western Reserve University's Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing.
The study included 337 participants, from 65 to 94 years old, living in Ohio's Summit and Portage counties.
They had to have at least one chronic illness, be enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid, have physical restrictions that prevented them from doing at least one basic daily task, such as bathing and dressing, and be unable to manage such responsibilities as taking medicines, handling finances or accessing transportation.

They discussed their backgrounds and physical and emotional well-being in interviews.
The researchers then used the University of Utah's Digit Lab, where Wright earned her doctorate degree while working for the Summa Health System, to link geographic and socioeconomic information on the neighbourhoods with health data.

Wright said she was surprised to learn that housework and maintaining their property affected the participants' physical and mental well-being more than such factors as neighbourhood or income.
"What I found was that neighbourhood poverty did not directly affect mental or physical health," she said.
The study provided evidence that people living in a chaotic environment seemed less satisfied than those in a place that was neat and tidy.

Wright hopes the study shows how important it is for sedentary older adults with disabilities and chronic illnesses to continue physical activities, such as doing reaching exercises while sitting, arm curls and standing up and sitting down in a chair.
The findings were published in the journal Geriatric Nursing.