House work might seem a drag, but researchers have suggested tasks like dusting, sweeping floors and washing the windows might help adults to stay healthy into old age. Writing in the journal BMJ Open, a Singapore-based team of researchers said regular physical activity “improves physical and mental health, and relieves the risks and effects of chronic diseases among older adults”.

The team randomly chose adults from the town of Yishun in Singapore, and asked them to complete cognitive function tests as well as activities to assess their physical capabilities, such as standing up from a chair as quickly as they could. Participants were also quizzed on their levels of physical activity, including the amount of light housework and heavy housework they did, and were assessed for their risk of having a fall based on measures such as knee extension strength. The study involved 249 participants aged 21-64 and 240 participants aged 65- 90. Most of those who reported doing high levels of heavy or light housework were women.

After taking into account factors including age and sex, the team found cognitive scores and attention scores were 8% and 14% higher respectively for older adults doing high amounts of heavy housework— on average 131 minutes a week— compared with low levels, which appeared to amount to none at all. Sit-to-stand times were lower for older adults reporting high amounts of heavy housework compared with low amounts，while they were also assessed as being at lower risk of having a fall.

Dr Shiou-Liang Wee, the co-author of the research, said health messaging on staying active should not just be about recreational physical activities. “Housework is a purposeful activity performed by many older adults. Independent of recreation, commuting and other work-related physical activity, heavy housework is linked to sharper memory and better falls protection in older adults,” he said.

【小题1】What does the team find?

A．Housework is a drag to the aged.

B．Health is connected with regular exercise.

C．Only doing housework can the aged stay healthy.

D．Regular physical activity is dangerous for the aged.

【小题2】What is paragraph 2 mainly about?

A．The research procedure.	B．The research result.
C．The research purpose.	D．The research institution.

【小题3】What was considered in the study?

A．Intelligence and age.	B．Education and sex.
C．Age and sex.	D．Family and income.

【小题4】What may Shiou-Liang Wee agree with?

A．Commuting is linked to sharper memory.

B．Heavy housework equals recreational activity.

C．People only need recreational physical activity for health.

D．Recreational physical activity shouldn’t replace housework.