Physical Activity, Including Walking, and Cognitive Function in Older Women

Abstract

Context Physical activity may help maintain cognitive function in older adults. Objective To examine the relation of long-term regular physical activity, including walking, to cognitive function. Design Women reported participation in leisure-time physical activities on biennial mailed questionnaires beginning in 1986. We assessed long-term activity by averaging energy expenditures from questionnaires in 1986 through participants' baseline cognitive assessments (1995 to 2001). We used linear regression to estimate adjusted mean differences in baseline cognitive performance and cognitive decline over 2 years, across levels of physical activity and walking. Setting and Participants Nurses' Health Study, including 18766 US women aged 70 to 81 years. Main Outcome Measure Validated telephone assessments of cognition administered twice approximately 2 years apart (1995 to 2001 and 1997 to 2003), including tests of general cognition, verbal memory, category fluency, and attention. Results Higher levels of activity were associated with better cognitive performance. On a global score combining results of all 6 tests, women in the second through fifth quintiles of energy expenditure scored an average of 0.06, 0.06, 0.09, and 0.10 standard units higher than women in the lowest quintile (P for trend Ͻ.001). Compared with women in the lowest physical activity quintile, we found a 20% lower risk of cognitive impairment for women in the highest quintile of activity. Among women performing the equivalent of walking at an easy pace for at least 1.5 h/wk, mean global scores were 0.06 to 0.07 units higher compared with walking less than 40 min/wk (PՅ.003). We also observed less cognitive decline among women who were more active, especially those in the 2 highest quintiles of energy expenditure. Women in the fourth and fifth quintiles had mean changes in global scores that were 0.04 (95% confidence interval, 0.02-0.10) and 0.06 (95% confidence interval, 0.02-0.11) standard units better than those in the lowest quintile. Conclusion Long-term regular physical activity, including walking, is associated with significantly better cognitive function and less cognitive decline in older women.

Does Exercise in Older Adults Predict Problem Solving? The Role of Personality

“…The results of this study, in which only a dozen participants did not exercise at all, cannot be seen as providing support for other reports that regular exercise is associated with less cognitive decline associated with aging [34] [35]. However, many other studies have reported significant improvements in cognitive functioning in association with regular aerobic exercise [36] [37].…”

An in vivo correlate of exercise-induced neurogenesis in the adult dentate gyrus

“…This observation is particularly interesting in light of studies suggesting that the dentate gyrus is a hippocampal subregion differentially vulnerable to the aging process, as shown in humans (39,40), nonhuman primates (30,41), and rodents (30,42), and that dentate gyrus dysfunction contributes to cognitive aging (30,40). Interestingly, a growing number of studies have established that exercise ameliorates age-related cognitive decline (43)(44)(45)(46). Thus, the effect that exercise was observed to have on the dentate gyrus likely contributes to the reported cognitive benefits exercise has on the aging brain.…”

Changes in physical activity and cognitive decline in older adults living in the community

“…A study examining physical activity and dementia did not find a significantly reduced risk for those participating in over 5 h per week of exercise (Chang et al 2010). Alternatively, the protective effect may be cumulative as higher levels of activity showed less cognitive decline in a study of women aged 70 years and older performing regular physical activity for 8 to 15 years (Weuve et al 2004). Even in this study, however, walking at an easy pace ≥1.5 h/week was associated with a significantly better cognitive performance.…”

“…Populationbased studies of older adults have reported a slower rate of decline in cognitive function among those engaged in higher levels of physical activity at baseline (Ku et al 2012;Lytle et al 2004;Weuve et al 2004;Yaffe et al 2001). In a meta-analysis of prospective studies involving people aged 65 years and older, physical activity at both high and low-to-moderate levels was found to lower the risk of cognitive decline (Sofi et al 2011).…”