Mild cognitive impairment is characterized by a slight loss of cognitive skills, such as memory and reasoning skills , whereby it can be difficult for a person to remember things, make decisions, or focus on tasks.
New research suggests that there might be a way to reverse these age-related cognitive problems . A team of researchers led by James A. Blumenthal of Duke University Medical Center in Durham, USA, examined the effects of regulated exercise in 160 people aged 65 years on average.
Exercise, diet, and mild cognitive impairment
The participants included in the research were sedentary at the beginning of the study. They had cardiovascular risk factors and reported symptoms of mild cognitive impairment. The experts wanted to examine the impact of physical activity and diet on cognitive abilities. Therefore, the volunteers followed the DASH diet (dietary approaches to stop hypertension). This diet consists of foods high in fiber and low in sodium, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, grains, and lean meat, as well as low-fat dairy.
The researchers divided the participants into four groups:
– One group did only aerobic exercise.
– One group adhered to the DASH diet (without any exercise).
– One group exercised and adopted the DASH diet.
– One group received educational calls related to health exclusively
The exercisers practiced it three times a week in 45-minute sessions, including warm-up exercises followed by walking, jogging or cycling.
The researchers assessed the participants ‘reasoning and memory skills at the start of the study and six months later with cognitive tests, and they measured the participants’ cardiorespiratory fitness with stress tests on a treadmill. Finally, the team assessed the participants’ cardiovascular health by measuring their blood pressure, blood sugar, and lipids.
The results revealed an average 5-point increase in executive function skills among exercisers and dieters, compared to those who only exercised or only dieters.
Executive function is the cognitive ability that allows a person to plan and organize goal-oriented actions, as well as focus and self-regulate their behavior. The researchers found no significant improvement in memory.
Improvements in executive function
” The results are encouraging because in just six months, by adding regular exercise to their lives, people with cognitive disabilities without dementia can improve their ability to plan and complete certain cognitive tasks,” explains James A. Blumenthal.
The principal investigator explains that the executive function scores of the participants were, at the beginning of the study, equivalent to those of 93 years, although their chronological age was 28 years younger.
However, after six months of additional exercise, the average score matched that of people who were 84 years old, equating to a nine-year improvement in executive function.
As Blumenthal cautions, “More research with larger samples, over long periods of time, is still needed to examine whether improvements continue and whether those improvements can best be achieved through multiple lifestyle approaches such as exercise and diet.”
