Stretching, range of motion, and aerobic exercise slow cognitive decline, study says

Cheer up couch potatoes! Regular stretching and balance and range of motion exercises are as good as aerobic exercise to slow the progression of mild cognitive decline, a new study has found.

“My concern at the beginning of the study was, ‘What if only aerobics make a difference? Good luck the majority of Americans are doing this Aerobic exercise regularly!’ It’s not sustainable,” the study author said Laura Baker, professor of gerontology and geriatric medicine at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, via email.

“But what we found was that cognitive function didn’t decline in either of the intervention groups over 12 months — the people doing aerobic exercise or the people doing stretching, balance, and range of motion,” Baker said.

Rudy Tanzi, a professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School in Boston, welcomed the findings that moderate levels of exercise — 120 to 150 minutes a week for 12 months — can slow cognitive decline in older adults with mild cognitive impairment.

dance, who was not involved in the study, studied the role of exercise in mice genetically bred to have Alzheimer’s disease and found that exercise induces the birth of new neurons in the section of the brain most affected by Alzheimer’s is affected, while promoting beneficial growth factors that improve nerve cell activity.

“So often, the benefits of interventions observed in mouse models of Alzheimer’s do not translate to human patients. It’s nice to see that in this new study, the benefits of exercise might transfer from mice to humans,” said Tanzi, who directs the Genetics and Aging Research Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

WHAT IS MILD COGNITIVE DEPRESSION?

The study, presented Tuesday at the 2022 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in San Diego, followed 296 participants who were completely sedentary when the experiment began. All had been diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment – the earliest stage of the slow slide into dementia.

“People with mild cognitive impairment are not cognitively normal, but they don’t have dementia,” Baker said. “They are perfectly capable of taking care of themselves, but what they have to go through is exhausting.

“‘I can’t remember where I’m supposed to be. let me check my calendar Oh, I forgot to write on that calendar. Let’s check another calendar. Oh I can’t find this calendar on my phone. Where is the key? I can’t find the key.”

“They’re able to regroup and get things done in the early stages,” Baker said, “but the toll is immense.”

Study participants underwent cognitive testing and then were randomized into two groups. One group undertook moderate-intensity aerobic exercise on treadmills or stationary bikes in pursuit of a goal from 70% to 85% of heart rate reserve: “That’s about 120 heartbeats per minute for about 30 to 40 minutes for a normal 70-year-old,” Baker said.

The other group did stretching, balance, and range of motion exercises designed to allow them to move their bodies in ways that would help them navigate real life.

“People in the balance movement group said they were thrilled – they could take grandchildren to football games without worrying about them tripping, or they could drive and turn around to see their backs, which they can’t do was doing before,” Baker said.

IMPORTANCE OF SUPPORT

Both groups exercised twice a week with a personal trainer for the first 12 months and then twice a week alone. Together, the groups have completed more than 31,000 training sessions during that time, Baker said.

At the end of the 12 months Cognitive function had not decreased in any of the groups. That’s impressive, Baker said, because a control group of matched people with mild cognitive impairment — who didn’t exercise — lost weight.

Studies have shown that social support is also key to improving brain health. So it is possible the results of the study were due to an increase in social support and not exercise?

“Well, we don’t know for sure,” Baker said. “But there is enough science to show the benefits of exercise alone for brain health. So this is not something to be swept under the rug.

“And Our recommendation would never be for people with mild cognitive impairment to do this alone,” she added. “You will need support. Movement alone is therefore not a prescription. Supported movement is a recipe and that will be our recommendation.”