Shorter term aerobic exercise improves brain, cognition, and cardiovascular fitness in aging

Abstract

† These authors have contributed equally to this work.Physical exercise, particularly aerobic exercise, is documented as providing a low cost regimen to counter well-documented cognitive declines including memory, executive function, visuospatial skills, and processing speed in normally aging adults. Prior aging studies focused largely on the effects of medium to long term (>6 months) exercise training; however, the shorter term effects have not been studied. In the present study, we examined changes in brain blood flow, cognition, and fitness in 37 cognitively healthy sedentary adults (57-75 years of age) who were randomized into physical training or a wait-list control group. The physical training group received supervised aerobic exercise for 3 sessions per week 1 h each for 12 weeks. Participants' cognitive, cardiovascular fitness and resting cerebral blood flow (CBF) were assessed at baseline (T1), mid (T2), and post-training (T3). We found higher resting CBF in the anterior cingulate region in the physical training group as compared to the control group from T1 to T3. Cognitive gains were manifested in the exercise group's improved immediate and delayed memory performance from T1 to T3 which also showed a significant positive association with increases in both left and right hippocampal CBF identified earlier in the time course at T2. Additionally, the two cardiovascular parameters, VO 2 max and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) showed gains, compared to the control group. These data suggest that even shorter term aerobic exercise can facilitate neuroplasticity to reduce both the biological and cognitive consequences of aging to benefit brain health in sedentary adults.

Cerebral Hypoperfusion Is Exaggerated With an Upright Posture in Heart Failure

“…Physical activity in older adults is beneficial for cardiovascular health and cognitive performance (26). Brain blood flow increases in response to short-term exercise training in previously sedentary seniors (27). In patients with HF, exercise training shows promise to improve cognitive function, although the effect on CBF remains elusive (28).…”

A Longitudinal Analysis of the Impact of Physical Activity on Neurocognitive Functioning Among HIV-Infected Adults

“…Moreover, PA intervention trials have consistently shown improved cognitive function in older HIV-uninfected adults who participate in aerobic activity as compared to control groups [10,[15][16][17][18][19][20]. Although the mechanisms by which PA affects neurocognition are not yet completely elucidated, research has suggested direct effects on the CNS, such as increased gray and white matter volume [10,16,18,21], changes in functional brain activity and strengthening of brain connections [22][23][24][25][26][27], and increases in cerebral perfusion [15,[28][29][30][31] and neurotrophic factors [32,33] that support angiogenesis and neuroplasticity. Indirect effects via the reduction of comorbidities (e.g., diabetes, hypertension) may also contribute to the decreased risk of cognitive decline [34,35].…”

Διαφορές Και Ομοιότητες Στη Νοημοσύνη Ηλικιωμένων Κατοίκων Αστικών Και Αγροτικών Περιοχών Της Ελλάδας

“…(Latzman & Markon, 2010). σωματική άσκηση (παραδείγματος χάριν, το περπάτημα) (Brown et al, 2013. Chapman et al, 2013.…”

“…de Bruijn et al, 2013. Gajewski & Falkenstein, 2016 και μια διατροφή πλούσια σε βιταμίνες (Deary et al, 2009 Chapman et al, 2013. Deary et al, 2009.…”