Dietary and Hormonal Factors in Relation to Physical Function

Kaitlin A. Hagan, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University

Physical function is increasingly recognized as a key component of healthy aging, in particular as a core component of mobility and independent living in older adults. Prior research has also demonstrated that poor physical function is related to hospitalization, long-term nursing home care, and increased mortality among older adults. Women appear to have a greater burden of physical function impairment, although it is not certain whether this is due to gender differences in reporting of impairments, risk factor differences, or biologic differences. In this dissertation, I examined not only risk factors for development of physical function impairment, but also explanations for apparent gender differences. First, while diet is related to numerous chronic diseases and conditions of aging, limited research has examined the role of diet, which may be an important strategy to prevent or...