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Peer-reviewedCC BYPreventive medicine reports

Rethinking mobility: Life space outperforms physical activity as a correlate of health outcomes among older adults in Singapore.

  • Sapphire Lin1,2,3,4
  • Xiaohui Xin5
  • Yee Sien Ng1,2,6
6 affiliations
  1. 1Centre for Population Health Research and Implementation, Singapore Health Services, Singapore.
  2. 2Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore.
  3. 3The Institute for Digital Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
  4. 4The N.1 Institute for Health, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
  5. 5Health Services Research Unit, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore Health Services, Singapore.
  6. 6Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore Health Services, Singapore.
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Abstract

Objective

Physical activity and life space are modifiable behavioral factors relevant to preventive medicine. While both are associated with health outcomes in older adults, their distinct contributions remain unclear. This study examined their associations with self-rated health and objectively measured physical performance, and tested whether effects on self-rated health were mediated by physical performance.Methods

We recruited 1118 community-dwelling older adults aged ≥50 years in Singapore between April 2022 and August 2023. Participants completed the University of Alabama at Birmingham's Life Space Assessment, the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form, and the EuroQol-Visual Analogue Scale. Physical performance was assessed using the Short Physical Performance Battery and three additional performance-based tests. Structural regression modeled direct effects on self-rated health and indirect effects via physical performance.Results

Life space emerged as a stronger predictor of both outcomes. It had both direct and indirect effects on self-rated health, whereas physical activity had only an indirect effect via physical performance.Conclusions

These findings suggest that life space may serve as a complementary or alternative indicator to traditional physical activity metrics for preventive medicine, supporting early identification and monitoring of functional decline in older adults.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{lin2026rethinking,
  title = {{Rethinking mobility: Life space outperforms physical activity as a correlate of health outcomes among older adults in Singapore.}},
  author = {Sapphire Lin and Xiaohui Xin and Yee Sien Ng},
  journal = {Preventive medicine reports},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1016/j.pmedr.2026.103656},
  url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42927076},
  note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Rethinking mobility: Life space outperforms physical activity as a correlate of health outcomes among older adults in Singapore.
AU  - Sapphire Lin
AU  - Xiaohui Xin
AU  - Yee Sien Ng
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/10
JO  - Preventive medicine reports
DO  - 10.1016/j.pmedr.2026.103656
UR  - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42927076
AB  - Objective  Physical activity and life space are modifiable behavioral factors relevant to preventive medicine. While both are associated with health outcomes in older adults, their distinct contributions remain unclear. This study examined their associations with self-rated health and objectively measured physical performance, and tested whether effects on self-rated health were mediated by physical performance.Methods  We recruited 1118 community-dwelling older adults aged ≥50 years in Singapore between April 2022 and August 2023. Participants completed the University of Alabama at Birmingham's Life Space Assessment, the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form, and the EuroQol-Visual Analogue Scale. Physical performance was assessed using the Short Physical Performance Battery and three additional performance-based tests. Structural regression modeled direct effects on self-rated health and indirect effects via physical performance.Results  Life space emerged as a stronger predictor of both outcomes. It had both direct and indirect effects on self-rated health, whereas physical activity had only an indirect effect via physical performance.Conclusions  These findings suggest that life space may serve as a complementary or alternative indicator to traditional physical activity metrics for preventive medicine, supporting early identification and monitoring of functional decline in older adults.
SN  - 2211-3355
ER  -