Complicating the Observations on Elite Athlete Life Expectancy
Some might hope that analysis of mortality data for elite athletes, largely meaning those who compete in professional events, could support an unambiguous relationship between physical fitness and longevity, and encourage more of us to be more active. Alas, nothing is simple in human health data. To start with, elite chess players, not noted for being a particularly athletic group, appear to gain much the same benefit to longevity as do the elite athletes. Thus perhaps this has more to do with socioeconomic status, or character traits such as drive and diligence that occur more often in professional sports participants, and also coincide with an overall better approach to long-term health practices. The open access paper here adds further depth to such discussions.
The positive effects of physical activity and recreational sports on health have been well-examined and are well-proven. In contrast, the consequences of extensive elite sports on life expectancy and mortality rates have been described in significantly less unique and comprehensive terms. here is a lack of models that systematically summarize the factors influencing the life span of elite athletes. Therefore, this study identifies the difference between all 6,066 German participants in Olympic Games between 1956 and 2016 and the total population.
An exposure group's mortality rates always show the sum of positive and negative factors effective at a specific measurement point in time in comparison to a control group. This means that the results are always preliminary. Nevertheless, since 1956, the sum of positive and negative effects of elite sports on the mortality of German Olympic participants appears to have been negative in comparison to the general population over 14 years old.
The lower mortality rates of elite athletes in most countries other than Germany compared to the respective country's general population could possibly be explained by the comparatively high life expectancy in Germany, as well as by the lower socioeconomic profit generated from a career in elite sports in Germany. This is also indicated by findings which show that German elite athletes generally have a lower life satisfaction compared to the overall population of the same age. The here presented study shows a negative influence on life span when participating in the Olympic Games several times and thus developing a high metabolism for a longer time. It also appears to be the case that previous studies compared the mortality of elite athletes with the total population, including infants. The higher infant mortality may, however, make the results appear more favorable for Olympic participants.
I wonder if they included GDR athletes in their sample? Given that it's widely known now that East German Olympic athletes were universally fed steroids (with little knowledge at the time of how to control side-effects), and girls given puberty blockers and testosterone, it would be hardly surprising that German athletes as a whole did not live longer.
I know that most Olympic finalists from Western nations in running (at least middle and long distance) lived far longer than their peers, although this might be because until relatively recently, athletics was an amateur elitist sport for the upper classes..
I would propose that it is the personality and lifestyle of above-average (say top 5 - 15% of the population) fitness enthusiast, not the elite athletes, who likely have the most to contribute to discussions on maintaining (and even accessing beneficial longevity based attributes) of the maximized life span. This would include cardio and resistance regimes started at or somewhat before puberty onset (perhaps a time of enhanced epigenetic effect), a regime that emphasizes regularity and commitment to work-outs that significantly push VO2max/ muscle-building over many years/ decades without significant injury or extended pause, and a continuation into 60s and beyond. I point to the somewhat-related TED talk by Christopher McDougall on life-long running, while referencing an isolated and ancient tribe of super-athletes with extremely low levels of disease and cancer from Mexico. This may push the idea that longevity is not found in extremes (though these tribe members may be considered ultra-elite by today's standards - the point is the age range of members) but in 'enhanced balance'; an optimization of several approaches in conjunction with exercise over many decades - even childhood.
Two cents from a former elite (think Olympics, world championships) female athlete.
My guess is more along the lines of MTor. As an elite athlete-who did NOT use performance enhancing drug-I need only look at a weight to gain muscle mass. I naturally recovered from high intensity workouts with ease. I took a couple of years off from my sport and was top 20 in the world within a very short time of coming back. I'm not saying this to impress-I just have no way to explain how the body of an Olympian works.
Even the difference between even an exceedingly high performing elite athlete and a high performing athlete is huge. Think about what happens when you are maybe 5 standard deviations to the right for MTor-it's great when you are young but I believe it has consequences as you age.