The Effectiveness of New Digital Technologies in Increasing Physical Activity Levels and Promoting Active and Healthy Ageing: A Narrative Review

Abstract

Active healthy ageing (AHA) is a goal that several world organisations promote and is essential for modern societies where the average age is increasing. Physical activity (PA), including exercise, is a central aspect of achieving this goal, even though a high percentage of the population has high levels of sedentariness and low levels of PA. Therefore, this narrative review aimed to summarise and critically evaluate the existing literature that investigates technology-induced changes in PA levels and the possibility that these may produce active lifestyles, promoting AHA; this is unclear in the apparently healthy older adult population. Training protocols delivered via a website, similar to mobile applications, seem capable of increasing not only physical fitness but also PA levels, at least in the short term. Wearable active tracker devices (WATs), alone or together with websites, can lead to an increase in step count and average daily moderate PA in outdoor environments, as well as in specifically designed applications. Technology that can offer virtual physical games is an effective strategy to promote PA by overcoming certain barriers that may limit its practice in apparently healthy older adults. Currently, information and communication technologies (ICTs), and more generally new digital technologies, show great potential in increasing PA levels and reducing sedentary levels, at least in the short term. The heterogeneity of the proposed interventions and the frequent lack of follow-ups do not allow us to evaluate the effectiveness in the long term, which is crucial for the AHA process.