Effects of physical exercise programs on body composition, physical fitness and quality of life in older people with overweight or obesity: a systematic review

Abstract

Approximately one third of the world's population is overweight or obese, with a higher prevalence in older people (Chooj, 2019). In the year 2030, 20% of the world's population will be represented by older people and half of them will suffer from obesity (Colleluori & Villarreal, 2021), becoming a major public health challenge (Jura & Kozak, 2016). Thus, the objective of the present study was to carry out a systematic review about the effects of physical exercise (PE) programs, as a single intervention, on the body composition, physical condition and quality of life (QoL) of older people with overweight or obesity. The PRISMA statement was used, conducting a search in the Scopus, Pubmed and Web of Science databases, during September 2023. Publications from the last 5 years were included, with older people who were overweight or obese. A total of 23 final articles met all inclusion criteria. The studies demonstrated that PE, as a single intervention, carried out between 8 to 12 weeks, has positive effects on the reduction of body fat, increase in muscle mass, improvement of physical condition and improvement of QoL of overweight or obesity older people, but these results will depend on the type of program carried out, among which were aerobic, resistance and combined. Due to the diversity of programs found, more studies would be needed to conclude about the most appropriate ones for the study population.