Results from a recent trial led by the University of Sydney have revealed that increased muscle strength can lead to improved brain function in adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). The study suggests that both type and intensity of exercise play a key role in maintaining quality of life and brain health as we grow older.
About 80% of patients diagnosed with MCI develop Alzheimer’s disease after six years. (For the purposes of this study, MCI refers to adults who have noticeably reduced cognitive abilities such as memory loss, but are still able to maintain day-to-day activities and live independently.)
The trial, conducted in collaboration with the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing at University of New South Wales and the University of Adelaide, was a randomized trial involving 100 adults with MCI, between the ages of 55 and 86. Participants were divided into four groups and assigned different combinations of resistance training, brain training, computerized cognitive training, and placebo training.
Researchers found that participant cognition improved significantly in the group prescribed resistance training. Computerized cognitive training and the placebo activities, on the other hand, did not have the same effect.
The benefits of resistance training also persisted for 12-months, long after after the supervised exercise sessions ended, offering further evidence that weight-bearing exercises are particularly good for the physical health and mental well-being of older adults.
