Playing High School Sports Linked To Fewer Doctor Visits After The Age Of 70, Study

In a new study, researchers found that people who played high school sports were more likely to have fewer doctor visits after they crossed 70 years of age.

Such people were more likely to have been actively playing on a sport team fifty years ago and are more active 70 year olds too, according to a press release. Researchers of the study looked at what factors of behavior, background, and personality impact the healthfulness of men over 70.

For the study, researchers from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich examined 712 World War II veterans who were healthy as young men. A survey was conducted on them 50 years later at average of 78 years. The most surprising result was that those who had played a high school sport in the 1930s or early 1940s, reported visiting their doctor fewer times a year.

The secret to fewer doctor visits at old age is to stay fit and active throughout your life. Researchers found that those people who played a sport in high school are more likely to remain fit and active as elder adults too.

The decrease in physical activities among children of today is a growing concern in the United States. The consequences of this include obesity and many mental and physical health problems. Researchers stated that an effective was to assess the importance of physical activity in children and adolescents is to look at the long-term impacts of physical activity on overall health and wellbeing.

Findings of this study can be used in schools and colleges to help authorities incorporate a session dedicated to physical activities in their curriculum. This can be a hugely positive impact of providing opportunities for children and adolescents to engage in physical activities.