Background: Compared to young individuals, older adults participate more in sedentary behavior (SB) and less in physical activity (PA). These behaviors are associated with numerous adverse health factors.
Objective: The purpose of the study was to examine the hypothetical effects of substituting time spent sleeping, performing SB, and performing moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) on depressive symptomatology in older adults.
Design and setting: An analytical cross-sectional study employing exploratory survey methods was conducted in the city of Alcobaça in the state of Bahia, Brazil.
Methods: The study included 473 older adults who answered a structured questionnaire during an interview. Exposure time to SB and PA level were assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire, and depressive symptoms were analyzed using the short version of the Geriatric Depression Scale. An isotemporal replacement model was used to evaluate the effects of different SB sessions on depressive symptomatology.
Results: An increase in the risk of depressive symptoms was observed when MVPA and sleep time were substituted for the same SB time at all times tested, with maximum values of 40% and 20%, respectively. Opposite substitution of MVPA and sleep time increments reduced the risk of depressive symptomatology by 28% and 17%, respectively.
Conclusions: The results of the present study indicate that replacing SB with the same amount of sleep or MVPA may reduce depressive symptoms. The longer the reallocation time, the greater are the benefits.