Week 10: Physical Activity as an Intervention Flashcards
what happens in the brain as we age?
- increased plaques and tangles
- blood vessels thicken and stiffen
- decreased blood flow
- atrophies
physical activity…
- decreases all-cause mortality
- decreases risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD)
- decreases risk of breast cancer
- decreases risk of fractures
- prevents decline in ability to do ADLs and IADLs
- prevents/postpones disabilities and functional limitations
- positively associated with quality of life outcomes
- reduces risk of incident depression
- reduces risk of cognitive decline
within enriched environments, physical activity is considered a key trigger for _____
neurogenesis
physical activity is associated with nearly a __% reduced risk of experiencing cognitive decline
40
what does animal research show (physical activity on brain health)?
- physical activity influences the integrity of the hippocampus
- widespread effects across the brain
what does human research show (physical activity and brain structure)?
- increased physical activity is associated with larger gray matter volumes
- increased physical activity is associated with increased neural efficiency
T or F: physical activity at any age is protective against age-related decline
TRUE
studies show that physical activity improves…
- executive functions
- attention
- processing speed
- working memory
- episodic memory
Ghreyson et al., 2018
larger effects were found for _____ vs control and physical activity interventions alone
combined physical activity with cognitive activity
Ghreyson et al., 2018
gains in cognition can be expected following combined (PA & CA) interventions for both _____ and _____
cognitively healthy, mildly impaired older adults
TB: what is an example of a mentally challenging physical activity for an older adult?
- learning a new sport
- learning new routes for neighborhood walks
- dance
- tai-chi
- yoga
- geocaching
adults performing greater amounts of _____ experience less anxiety and depression-like symptoms
physical activity
TB: what are some barriers that older adults may face when wanting to increase physical activity in their life?
- fear of falling
- financial barriers
- built environment
- stereotypes
- gender
- culture/religion
- depression (motivation)
- low self-efficacy
- time
- social support
- awareness
Colcombe et al., 2004:
physical activity
primary research question?
does level of cardiac fitness correspond with efficiency in functional brain networks during cognitive task performance?
Colcombe et al., 2004:
physical activity
methods?
study 1:
- cross-sectional observational
- participants divided into low vs high fitness
- 1 mile walk test
study 2:
- participants randomly assigned to CVF program or stretching/toning group
- 6 month programs
- treadmill test (O2)
measures included:
- flanker task
- reaction time
- incongruent vs congruent
Colcombe et al., 2004:
physical activity
results?
in study 1 & 2, high-fit participants & aerobic training participants:
- showed less interference from incongruent stimuli
- brain activity greater in executive control regions (frontal & parietal) and lower in error monitoring regions (ACC)
Colcombe et al., 2004:
physical activity
discussion?
- CFT associated with increased brain activity for executive control and decreased activity for error monitoring
- strong empirical evidence that fitness can improve executive control
Colcombe et al., 2004:
physical activity
cautions?
- are differences attributable to increased blood flow or circulatory changes that impact brain measures?
- is there an optimal level of fitness?
- could these effects be mediated through mood changes?
TB: how are the flanker task and stroop task similar?
- include congruent vs incongruent tasks
- measures of interference (distraction) to slow you down
- measures of executive functioning
Boyke et al., 2008:
physical activity
primary research question?
given that brain and behavioural changes are known to occur in older adults, can structural neuroplasticity be demonstrated in this population?
Boyke et al., 2008:
physical activity
methods?
- two groups: juggling (learn to juggle 3 balls in 3 months) vs control
- proficient if could juggle for 60 seconds continuously
- measured pre & post intervention and months later through
- measured gray matter volume through brain scans
Boyke et al., 2008:
physical activity
results?
- transient increases in gray matter identified for juggling group (main effect)
- transient increases in jugglers vs controls (interaction)
Boyke et al., 2008:
physical activity
discussion?
- older adults demonstrated structural neuroplasticity
- effects occurred even though older adults did not attain the same level of juggling proficiency as young adults
Boyke et al., 2008:
physical activity
cautions?
- neurogenesis unlikely to be detectable using brain imaging
TB: what other factors could contribute to exercise’s benefit to cognition in older adults?
- self-efficacy and confidence
- social community
- help to cope with stress
- help with sleep
- improving energy levels
