Can the Belgian Coastal Environment Improve Physical and Cognitive Health in Older Adults?

Can the Belgian Coastal Environment Boost Physical and Cognitive Health in Older Adults?

The goal of this interventional study is to learn if exposure to coastal environments improves the physical and cognitive health of older adults over the age of 60. The main questions it aims to answer are:

Does coastal exposure affect physical stress levels in older adults? Does coastal exposure affect self-reported stress levels in older adults? Does coastal exposure affect cognitive measures, such as sustained attention, in older adults? Does coastal exposure affect sleep quality in older adults? Is there a difference between the various components of coastal environments (e.g. dykes, dunes,...) in their effect on older adults' physical stress?

This wil be a within-subject study, in which participants get exposed to both a coastal and an urban environment to compare their response to these environments.

Participants will perform a coastal and urban walk on different days, equipped with wearable sensors (namely a wrist- and chestband) to measure various parameters such as heart rate and skin conductivity. Before, during and after the walk saliva samples will be collected for cortisol analysis. Before and after the walks they will also answer some questions (on e.g. overall demographics but also self-reported mental health) and perform cognitive tests (to study e.g. sustained attention).

Due to practical reasons regarding time, infrastructure and resources, the second phase with video exposure was cancelled. Furthermore, although randomization was initially planned, allocation to intervention order was ultimately determined by room availability constraints, resulting in a non-randomized design.

Inclusion Criteria:

You are willing to make the time needed to complete the experiment. You understand and can communicate in Dutch. You are 60 years or older and retired. You are familiar with the city of Ostend. This means you visit Ostend multiple times per year and are preferably familiar with the area around the Grote Post and Fort Napoleon.

You smoke no more than 10 cigarettes per day. You are able and comfortable walking for approximately 30 minutes at an average pace without aids such as a cane or walker.

You do not have a pacemaker. You are not blind or deaf. You do not take tricyclic antidepressants or clozapine.

Exclusion Criteria:

People who cannot participate in the entire experiment, do not speak Dutch, are under 60 years old or not yet retired, have a pacemaker, are blind or deaf, take tricyclic antidepressants or clozapine, are not at all familiar with the city of Ostend, smoke more than 10 cigarettes per day, or are unable to walk for 30 minutes continuously without aids are not eligible to participate in the experiment.