Kilocalorie Expenditure and All-Cause Mortality in Older Male Veterans and Nonveterans

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of self-reported leisure-time physical activity, converted to kilocalorie expenditure and expressed as average daily expenditure, on all-cause mortality among older males 65 years of age and older in the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Study of Aging (SOA). Mean age of participants was 75.4 years. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard models evaluated the predictors of overall survival. Kilocalorie expenditure (p = .01), Black race (p = .02), young age (p < .00), fewer depressive symptoms (p = .00), and absence of cognitive impairment (p < .00) were significant independent predictors of higher rates of survival. Low body mass index was a significant independent predictor of death (p = .03). Veteran status did not improve survival. Further study about kilocalorie expenditure and mortality could lead to reductions in premature mortality in community-dwelling older men in the Deep South.