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Background Low lung function is associated with high mortality and adverse cardiopulmonary outcomes. Less is known of its association with broader health indices such as self-reported respiratory symptoms, perceived general health, and cognitive and physical performance. The present study seeks to address the association between forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV.sub.1 ), an indicator of lung function, with broad markers of general health, relevant to aging trajectory in the general population. Methods and findings From the Canadian general population, 22,822 adults (58% females, mean age 58.8 years [standard deviation (SD) 9.6]) were enrolled from the community between June 2012 and April 2015 from 11 Canadian cities and 7 provinces. Mixed effects regression was used to assess the cross-sectional relationship between FEV.sub.1 with self-reported respiratory symptoms, perceived poor general health, and cognitive and physical performance. All associations were adjusted for age, sex, body mass index (BMI), education, smoking status, and self-reported comorbidities and expressed as adjusted odds ratios (aORs). Based on the Global Lung Function Initiative (GLI) reference values, 38% (n = 8,626) had normal FEV.sub.1 (z-scores >0), 37% (n = 8,514) mild (z-score 0 to > -1 SD), 19% (n = 4,353) moderate (z-score -1 to > -2 SD), and 6% (n = 1,329) severely low FEV.sub.1 (z-score = < -2 SD). There was a graded association between lower FEV.sub.1 with higher aOR [95% CI] of self-reported moderate to severe respiratory symptoms (mild FEV.sub.1 1.09 [0.99 to 1.20] p = 0.08, moderate 1.45 [1.28 to 1.63] p < 0.001, and severe 2.67 [2.21 to 3.23] p < 0.001]), perceived poor health (mild 1.07 [0.9 to 1.27] p = 0.45, moderate 1.48 [1.24 to 1.78] p = Conclusions We observed graded associations between lower FEV.sub.1 with higher odds of disabling respiratory symptoms, perceived poor general health, and lower cognitive and physical performance. These findings support the broader implications of measured lung function on general health and aging trajectory., Author(s): MyLinh Duong 1,*, Ali Usman 2, Jinhui Ma 2, Yangqing Xie 3, Julie Huang 4, Michele Zaman 5, Alex Dragoman 6, Steven Jiatong Chen 6, Malik Farooqi 1, Parminder [...]