Retirees who do volunteer work in schools may help not only children but
their own health as well, a study suggests.
Researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore found that older adults
who served as mentors and tutors in their local elementary schools became more
physically active in their daily lives.
Those who were sedentary before joining the volunteer program, called
Experience Corps, more than doubled their physical activity levels during the
school year, according to findings published online by the Journal of Urban
Health.
The increase was not just a result of the volunteer program itself, the
researchers found. Volunteers were more active in general, getting more
household chores and gardening done, for example, while cutting down on TV time.
"They actually have more energy for their daily activities," said Dr. Erwin
Tan, an assistant professor of geriatrics at Johns Hopkins and the study's lead
author.
The activity boost was comparable to what's been found in clinical trials
aimed at getting older adults to exercise, Tan told Reuters Health. In the case
of the volunteer program, he noted, the improvement in physical activity is just
one of the benefits.
The work offers both mental and social stimulation for older volunteers, Tan
said, while children and schools benefit from the added help. Past research has
found that the program improves children's reading skills.
For the current study, Tan and his colleagues randomly assigned 113 adults
age 60 and older to either the Experience Corps program or a waiting list. Those
in the volunteer program worked in a Baltimore public elementary school for 15
hours per week, where they helped children with their reading skills, problem
solving, and cooperation.
After four to eight months, Tan's team found, volunteers were more likely
than the comparison group to have bumped up their overall activity levels. They
were burning 40 percent more calories each week, on average, while the
comparison group expended fewer calories over time.
Most of the volunteers were low-income African Americans, a group at
particular risk of low activity levels and chronic medical conditions like
diabetes and high blood pressure. It's important, Tan said, that volunteer
programs reach out to these older adults.
The Experience Corps program operates in 14 U.S. cities, including Boston,
Chicago, New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C.
"These schools are so eager to get the help," Tan said.
For older adults not inclined to return to school, Tan pointed out that there
are many ways to volunteer and stay active after retirement. A national program
called Senior Corps, he noted, connects older adults to a range of volunteer
opportunities.
