Characterization of the Effects of a Six-Month Dancing as Approach for Successful Aging
Aging is accompanied by a decline in multiple domains. Positive effects of dance practice on several health issues have been evaluated in young adults, while the effects of regular social dance practice on physical fitness, sexual health, and cognitive functions have not been studied yet in older ex...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2019-01-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Endocrinology |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2019/2048391 |
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| author | Maria Grazia Vaccaro Giulia Izzo Alessandro Ilacqua Silvia Migliaccio Carlo Baldari Laura Guidetti Andrea Lenzi Aldo Quattrone Antonio Aversa Gian Pietro Emerenziani |
| author_facet | Maria Grazia Vaccaro Giulia Izzo Alessandro Ilacqua Silvia Migliaccio Carlo Baldari Laura Guidetti Andrea Lenzi Aldo Quattrone Antonio Aversa Gian Pietro Emerenziani |
| author_sort | Maria Grazia Vaccaro |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Aging is accompanied by a decline in multiple domains. Positive effects of dance practice on several health issues have been evaluated in young adults, while the effects of regular social dance practice on physical fitness, sexual health, and cognitive functions have not been studied yet in older experienced dancers. Thus, the aim of this study has been to investigate whether a 6-month social dance practice might influence fitness performance, sexual health, and specific cognitive functions and/or mood characteristics in older experienced dancers. Thirty experienced dancers (age: 71.2±5.1 years, 18 females/12 males) were enrolled from the dance school “NonSoloLiscio” of Catanzaro. Body composition, physical fitness, sexual health, and cognitive functions were assessed before (T0) and after (T6) intervention. After 6 months of dance practice, percent of fat mass (%FM) significantly decreased (p<0.01), while fat-free mass (FFM) significantly increased (p<0.01) in both genders. Moreover, significant main effects of time on physical fitness tests, such as chair stand test (CST) (p<0.01), gait speed (p<0.05), and timed up and go (p<0.05), were found. Sexual health was significantly higher in males than in females at T0 and no significant effects of dance on subjects’ sexual health were found. Interestingly, trait of anxiety significant decreased (p<0.05) and perception of retrospective memory significantly increased (p=0.05) after training independently of gender. Our preliminary results suggest that, even in older intermediate-level dancer, the practice of social dance might positively influence body composition and also increase fitness performance, memory functions, and anxiety. In contrast, no effects on sexual health were observed after 6 months of dancing. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-48b463b6cf724ec18db5dcea339a9d00 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1687-8337 1687-8345 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2019-01-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal of Endocrinology |
| spelling | doaj-art-48b463b6cf724ec18db5dcea339a9d002025-02-03T05:58:55ZengWileyInternational Journal of Endocrinology1687-83371687-83452019-01-01201910.1155/2019/20483912048391Characterization of the Effects of a Six-Month Dancing as Approach for Successful AgingMaria Grazia Vaccaro0Giulia Izzo1Alessandro Ilacqua2Silvia Migliaccio3Carlo Baldari4Laura Guidetti5Andrea Lenzi6Aldo Quattrone7Antonio Aversa8Gian Pietro Emerenziani9Neuroscience Centre, “Magna Graecia” University, Catanzaro, ItalyDepartment of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, “Magna Graecia” University, Catanzaro, ItalyDepartment of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, “Foro Italico” University, Rome, ItalyDepartment of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, “Foro Italico” University, Rome, ItalyUniversity eCampus, Novedrate, ItalyDepartment of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, “Foro Italico” University, Rome, ItalyDepartment of Experimental Medicine, “Sapienza” University, Rome, ItalyNeuroscience Centre, “Magna Graecia” University, Catanzaro, ItalyDepartment of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, “Magna Graecia” University, Catanzaro, ItalyDepartment of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, “Magna Graecia” University, Catanzaro, ItalyAging is accompanied by a decline in multiple domains. Positive effects of dance practice on several health issues have been evaluated in young adults, while the effects of regular social dance practice on physical fitness, sexual health, and cognitive functions have not been studied yet in older experienced dancers. Thus, the aim of this study has been to investigate whether a 6-month social dance practice might influence fitness performance, sexual health, and specific cognitive functions and/or mood characteristics in older experienced dancers. Thirty experienced dancers (age: 71.2±5.1 years, 18 females/12 males) were enrolled from the dance school “NonSoloLiscio” of Catanzaro. Body composition, physical fitness, sexual health, and cognitive functions were assessed before (T0) and after (T6) intervention. After 6 months of dance practice, percent of fat mass (%FM) significantly decreased (p<0.01), while fat-free mass (FFM) significantly increased (p<0.01) in both genders. Moreover, significant main effects of time on physical fitness tests, such as chair stand test (CST) (p<0.01), gait speed (p<0.05), and timed up and go (p<0.05), were found. Sexual health was significantly higher in males than in females at T0 and no significant effects of dance on subjects’ sexual health were found. Interestingly, trait of anxiety significant decreased (p<0.05) and perception of retrospective memory significantly increased (p=0.05) after training independently of gender. Our preliminary results suggest that, even in older intermediate-level dancer, the practice of social dance might positively influence body composition and also increase fitness performance, memory functions, and anxiety. In contrast, no effects on sexual health were observed after 6 months of dancing.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2019/2048391 |
| spellingShingle | Maria Grazia Vaccaro Giulia Izzo Alessandro Ilacqua Silvia Migliaccio Carlo Baldari Laura Guidetti Andrea Lenzi Aldo Quattrone Antonio Aversa Gian Pietro Emerenziani Characterization of the Effects of a Six-Month Dancing as Approach for Successful Aging International Journal of Endocrinology |
| title | Characterization of the Effects of a Six-Month Dancing as Approach for Successful Aging |
| title_full | Characterization of the Effects of a Six-Month Dancing as Approach for Successful Aging |
| title_fullStr | Characterization of the Effects of a Six-Month Dancing as Approach for Successful Aging |
| title_full_unstemmed | Characterization of the Effects of a Six-Month Dancing as Approach for Successful Aging |
| title_short | Characterization of the Effects of a Six-Month Dancing as Approach for Successful Aging |
| title_sort | characterization of the effects of a six month dancing as approach for successful aging |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2019/2048391 |
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