Golfers Gain From 40% Cut in Death Rate, Study Finds (Update2)
May 30 (Bloomberg) -- The death rate for golfers is 40 percent lower than for other people of the same sex, age and socioeconomic status, a study published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports found.
This equates to a five-year increase in life expectancy, scientists led by Anders Ahlbom and Bahman Farahmand at the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm said. Golfers with a low handicap -- a measure of a player's ability -- are the best protected, they said.
Exercise is known to promote health even though the exact benefits of particular activities are still largely unknown, the researchers said. Golf, a sport involving low-intensity exercise, is practiced by about 60 million people worldwide, according to the European Institute of Golf Course Architects.
``A round of golf means being outside for 4 or 5 hours, walking at a fast pace for 6 to 7 kilometers (3.7 to 4.4 miles), something which is known to be good for health,'' Ahlbom said in an e-mailed statement. ``People play golf into old age, and there are also positive social and psychological aspects to the game that can be of help.''
The study was based on data from 300,000 Swedish golfers. Other factors, such as a generally healthy lifestyle, may help explain the lower death rate seen among golfers, the scientists said. It is still likely that playing the game has a significant impact in itself on health, Ahlbom and Farahmand said.
Blue-Collar Professions
``Maintaining a low handicap involves playing a lot, so this supports the idea that it is largely the game itself that is good for the health,'' Ahlbom said.
The effect on the death rate was greater for golfers from so-called blue-collar professions than for those from white- collar professions, the researchers said. The lowest rates of mortality were found in the group of players with the lowest handicap.
Handicaps are a way of measuring a player's skill that allows people of different abilities to compete on close to equal terms. The way they're calculated varies by country. The best golfers have the lowest handicaps.
There is limited research on the effects of other types of sports on life expectancy, Ahlbom said.
More evidence of the health benefits of outdoor pursuits came from a 2000 study carried out at the University of Copenhagen, which found that cycling to work decreased the risk of death by 39 percent, even including accident risk and after adjustment for other risk factors such as leisure time physical activity.
The Danish researchers looked at the health of 13,375 women and 17,265 men between 20 to 93 years old during a 14-year period. Of the total, 15,000 cycled regularly, including 7,000 who cycled to work.
To contact the reporter on this story: Carey Sargent in Geneva at [email protected]
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May 30 (Bloomberg) -- The death rate for golfers is 40 percent lower than for other people of the same sex, age and socioeconomic status, a study published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports found.
This equates to a five-year increase in life expectancy, scientists led by Anders Ahlbom and Bahman Farahmand at the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm said. Golfers with a low handicap -- a measure of a player's ability -- are the best protected, they said.
Exercise is known to promote health even though the exact benefits of particular activities are still largely unknown, the researchers said. Golf, a sport involving low-intensity exercise, is practiced by about 60 million people worldwide, according to the European Institute of Golf Course Architects.
``A round of golf means being outside for 4 or 5 hours, walking at a fast pace for 6 to 7 kilometers (3.7 to 4.4 miles), something which is known to be good for health,'' Ahlbom said in an e-mailed statement. ``People play golf into old age, and there are also positive social and psychological aspects to the game that can be of help.''
The study was based on data from 300,000 Swedish golfers. Other factors, such as a generally healthy lifestyle, may help explain the lower death rate seen among golfers, the scientists said. It is still likely that playing the game has a significant impact in itself on health, Ahlbom and Farahmand said.
Blue-Collar Professions
``Maintaining a low handicap involves playing a lot, so this supports the idea that it is largely the game itself that is good for the health,'' Ahlbom said.
The effect on the death rate was greater for golfers from so-called blue-collar professions than for those from white- collar professions, the researchers said. The lowest rates of mortality were found in the group of players with the lowest handicap.
Handicaps are a way of measuring a player's skill that allows people of different abilities to compete on close to equal terms. The way they're calculated varies by country. The best golfers have the lowest handicaps.
There is limited research on the effects of other types of sports on life expectancy, Ahlbom said.
More evidence of the health benefits of outdoor pursuits came from a 2000 study carried out at the University of Copenhagen, which found that cycling to work decreased the risk of death by 39 percent, even including accident risk and after adjustment for other risk factors such as leisure time physical activity.
The Danish researchers looked at the health of 13,375 women and 17,265 men between 20 to 93 years old during a 14-year period. Of the total, 15,000 cycled regularly, including 7,000 who cycled to work.
To contact the reporter on this story: Carey Sargent in Geneva at [email protected]
Golf more.......
and Make Money with SMASHBUCKS
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