Association between Daily Living Walking Speed and Lifestyle and Physiological Factors in Older, Female Pokémon GO Players

Background: Walking speed is a reliable barometer of adverse health outcomes, particularly among older people. Few studies evaluated factors associated with daily actual walking speed, rather than that measured in a laboratory setting or self-reported data. Methods: In a joint effort with The Pokémon Company, we recruited study participants through a women’s magazine and analyzed data from 63 Pokémon GO players. We measured the true walking speed in daily life among older women using a data-gathering mobile application. Then, using questionnaire survey data collected on these participants in 2019, we estimated the relationship between walking speed and their lifestyle and physiological factors. In the analysis, we employed a bi-directional stepwise linear regression approach, with the Akaike information criterion (AIC) for variable selection. Results: The mean age of the 63 participants was 63.03 years (standard deviation, SD 7.46);the average walking speed was 4.56 km per hour (SD 1.54);and 52 (82.5%) and 55 (87.3%) participants answered that they had excellent/good health physically and mentally, respectively. After adjusted for covariates in a stepwise regression approach, we identified a significant association between −1.33 (95% confidence intervals −2.52 to −0.15) km/hour lower walking speed and the experience of outdoor falls within a year. We also demonstrated that the walking speed was 1.07 (0.33 to 1.81) km/hour faster for those who had played Pokémon GO before the study started. Conclusions: The true walking speed in daily life among older women was measured by a data-gathering mobile application. Although all participants were women recruited on a voluntary basis with an understanding of the purpose of the study, and the surveys were conducted at a cross-sectional setting, a significant relationship with the experience of outdoor falls was demonstrated. We also present evidence suggesting a possible relationship between Pokémon GO play and faster walking speed.

Decreased incidence followed by comeback of pediatric infections during the COVID‑19 pandemic in Japan

During the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pandemic,the Japanese government implemented several infection control measures,such as states of emergency(SoE)and school closures,and encouraged universal masking and hand hygiene.Initial activity restrictions and improved hygiene were found to be associated with declines in the incidence of infuenza during the 2019–2020 winter season[1].Prior studies have found that the incidence of seven pediatric infections,such as pharyngoconjunctivitis and varicella,decreased during and after the school closures in Japan[2].As activity restrictions continue to be lifted,there is growing concern that pediatric infections may suddenly return given that the pool of susceptible children increased during the pandemic[3].In this study,we use national infectious disease sentinel data from January 2012 to October 2021 to assess changes in the reported number of pediatric infections in Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic.We hypothesize that the reporting of many infectious diseases decreased during the early stages of the pandemic but ultimately returned to normal when activity restrictions were lifted.