Complicating the Observations on Elite Athlete Life Expectancy
Some might hope that analysis of mortality data for elite athletes, largely meaning those who compete in professional events, could support an unambiguous relationship between physical fitness and longevity, and encourage more of us to be more active. Alas, nothing is simple in human health data. To start with, elite chess players, not noted for being a particularly athletic group, appear to gain much the same benefit to longevity as do the elite athletes. Thus perhaps this has more to do with socioeconomic status, or character traits such as drive and diligence that occur more often in professional sports participants, and also coincide with an overall better approach to long-term health practices. The open access paper here adds further depth to such discussions.
The positive effects of physical activity and recreational sports on health have been well-examined and are well-proven. In contrast, the consequences of extensive elite sports on life expectancy and mortality rates have been described in significantly less unique and comprehensive terms. here is a lack of models that systematically summarize the factors influencing the life span of elite athletes. Therefore, this study identifies the difference between all 6,066 German participants in Olympic Games between 1956 and 2016 and the total population.
An exposure group's mortality rates always show the sum of positive and negative factors effective at a specific measurement point in time in comparison to a control group. This means that the results are always preliminary. Nevertheless, since 1956, the sum of positive and negative effects of elite sports on the mortality of German Olympic participants appears to have been negative in comparison to the general population over 14 years old.
The lower mortality rates of elite athletes in most countries other than Germany compared to the respective country's general population could possibly be explained by the comparatively high life expectancy in Germany, as well as by the lower socioeconomic profit generated from a career in elite sports in Germany. This is also indicated by findings which show that German elite athletes generally have a lower life satisfaction compared to the overall population of the same age. The here presented study shows a negative influence on life span when participating in the Olympic Games several times and thus developing a high metabolism for a longer time. It also appears to be the case that previous studies compared the mortality of elite athletes with the total population, including infants. The higher infant mortality may, however, make the results appear more favorable for Olympic participants.