ArticleBMC public health2025
Internet use and frailty in Chinese middle-aged and older adults: empirical evidence from CHARLS 2020.
Article in BMC public health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Family caregivers' willingness to use online psychological therapy for individuals with mental illness in China: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Longitudinal bidirectional associations among sarcopenia risk, social isolation, and frailty in Chinese older adults using an item response theory-derived frailty index.Frontiers in public health · 2026Observational
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundAt present, the impact of Internet use on health remains controversial. This article verifies the impact of the Internet on the health of middle-aged and older adults from a reverse perspective through the relationship between Internet use and frailty. The key research focuses on whether Internet use is associated with reducing the risk of frailty, and how its levels and multiple types affect this risk.
methodsWe conducted our analysis using data from the 2020 wave of China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), selecting a total of 10,727 Chinese adults aged 45 years or older. To examine the relationship between Internet use and frailty, we employed logit regression and addressed endogeneity by employing propensity score matching to match Internet-using and non-Internet-using middle-aged and older adults. Additionally, we tested the robustness of our results by replacing the independent variables with WeChat.
resultsThe logit regression results indicated a significant negative effect of Internet use, level of internet use and type of internet use on frailty (p<0.001). The propensity score matching test further confirmed that Internet use had a negative effect on frailty (p<0.001). Moreover, when WeChat was used as a replacement for the independent variable, it also exhibited a negative effect on frailty (P<0.001). Lastly, we conducted a heterogeneity test for gender, age and household registration factors, which revealed persistent heterogeneity in Internet use across these three variables.
conclusionOur findings suggest that Internet use, level of internet use and type of internet use has a negative effect on frailty among middle-aged and older adults, scilicet promoting geriatric health. It is recommended that middle-aged and older adults be encouraged to access the Internet, receive guidance on how to use electronic devices such as cell phones and tablets, and engage in social and recreational activities through online media. By employing the Internet in a rational manner, the physical and mental health of middle-aged and elderly individuals in China can be enhanced.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.