Daily physical activity, like going for a short walk or playing with your children, can have short-term benefits for cognitive health, equivalent to reversing four years of cognitive aging. Masu. That was an important discovery for my colleagues and me our new researchwas published in the behavioral medical journal “Annals of Behavioral Medicine”.
before enrolling Research on diet and dementia riskasked a diverse sample of 204 middle-aged adults to check in via a smartphone application five times a day for nine days.
At each check-in, participants had to complete a short survey asking about their mood, food choices, and whether they had done any physical activity in the approximately 3.5 hours leading up to the survey. In addition, participants completed several short brain games, each lasting approximately one minute, representing a performance-based cognitive assessment to assess mental speed and short-term memory.
My team found that when participants reported being physically active in the period leading up to the study, their cognitive processing speed measures improved during check-in. Although there was no improvement in measures of working memory, the time taken to complete memory tasks was similar to that seen in measures of processing speed.
These speed improvements were observed regardless of whether the activity was light or moderate to vigorous intensity. This leads us to the conclusion that exercise, whether in the form of intentional exercise or as part of everyday life, is an essential element to achieve this effect.
why is it important
In general, as we age, we slow down both physically and mentally. In research on exercise and healthy lifestyles, Long-term cognitive and brain health benefits To stay physically active, much of this research focuses on moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity, or what most of us think of as exercise. Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans.
Still, these guidelines and other experts suggest that adults move more, sit less.
My colleagues and I are studying how more mobility can improve cognitive health and reduce the risk of age-related dementia, over what timescales the effects appear, and in what ways. I’m interested in understanding what types of moves qualify.
What is not known yet
Our study relied on having participants report whether they were engaged in physical activity in the time between each check-in. Although participants were provided training on how to think about intensity levels, it is possible that each participant had a slightly different perception of their activity.
For example, participants may not believe that their recent walk actually qualifies as a moderate-intensity activity. Physical activity monitors that can separate time and intensity may help future studies more clearly elucidate these associations.
what’s next
It is not yet clear whether these short-term benefits accumulate over time to improve long-term brain health and reduce dementia risk. Our team is conducting research efforts to better understand these associations over broader time periods.
My research involves data collection via smartphones and wearable devices to better understand how health-promoting behaviors and cognitive health interact as we age. This type of digital approach allows my team to pursue questions about how everyday behaviors and experiences influence cognition in everyday life, and is an important part of the field of dementia risk and prevention research. It represents a significant methodological advance.
We aim to use these tools to better identify individuals at risk of negative cognitive outcomes and new targets for dementia prevention.
