A systematic review of single health behavior change interventions vs. multiple health behavior change interventions among older adults

Multiple behavior change is widely used to reduce targeted health behaviors; however, its effect on behaviors such as physical activity, nutrition, and alcohol and tobacco use among older adults remains inconclusive. The primary purpose of this systematic review was to evaluate the effects of single health behavior change (SHBC) interventions vs. multiple health behavior change (MHBC) interventions among older age individuals. PubMed was searched for publications on health behavior interventions from 2006 to 2011. Twenty-one randomized clinical trials assessed the effects of health behavior change in older individuals. Results were reviewed by a number of health behaviors and effectiveness. Results revealed that within SHBC interventions, physical activity or exercise behavior revealed that interventions were the most common and showed the most promise in influencing positive outcomes in physical activity behavior among community-dwelling older adults. There were too few MHBC studies identified to allow confident comparison to SHBC interventions. The MHBC field is still at an early stage within the older adult literature, and more attention is recommended to investigate if the benefits of MHBC apply to this age group.