Older adults who want to improve their fitness levels and health might want to consider taking Latin dance classes. A new study out of the University of Illinois at Chicago has found that Latino adults experienced health benefits after they participated in a four-month dance program.
The researchers recruited 54 Spanish-speaking adults who were around the age of 65. The majority of the samples, at 80 percent, were Mexican women. All of the participants were not very physically active.
The researchers divided the participants randomly into two groups. Participants from the dance group attended a class two times a week for four months. The class, BAILAMOS©, which was created by researchers David X. Marquex and Miguel Mendez, included four styles of dance: merengue, bachata, cha cha cha and salsa. The classes were headed by a dance instructor, and the difficulty in the routines increased as the weeks progressed. Participants in the other group went to a health education class.
The participants answered questions about their physical activity levels during their leisure time. They also underwent a 400-meter walk test at the beginning and at the end of the study.
The research team found that participants from the dance group were able to improve their results from the 400-meter walk test. The amount of time that it took the participants to complete the test fell from around 430 seconds to 392 seconds.
They reported that the dancers ended up being more physically active in their leisure time. Before the study, the amount of time that the participants were physically active during their leisure time was 650 minutes per week. After the study, they spent 818 minutes per week being physically active during leisure time.
Participants in the health education program also had improvements in their walk test and physical activity levels. The improvements, however, were not as significant when compared to the results from the dance group.
"There are many barriers older Latino adults face, and they are busy with caregiving and other responsibilities, so often physical activity takes a back seat and many times the opportunities are unavailable," Vásquez said in the news release. "This program engaged them on many levels, physically, culturally and emotionally. Anecdotally, I've heard participants say attending dance class is their stress relief. They also interact with others and build community. This impacts their physical as well as emotional health and wellbeing."
The team presented its findings were at the American Heart Association's Epidemiology/Lifestyle 2016 Scientific Sessions in Phoenix, Ariz.
