By pooling data from dozens of experiments, researchers can show which brains benefit most from exercise-ScienceDaily.

Everyone always asks, “How much exercise should I do? What is the minimum to see improvement?” “From our study, at least four months a week, about three times a week,” said Sara Agjayan, lead author, a PhD student in clinical and biological health psychology at the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences. Exercise seems to be the amount needed to enjoy the benefits of episode memory. “

Episodic memory is the kind of thing that deals with what happened to you in the past. It is also one of the first to decline with age. “I usually like to talk about the first time you grab the steering wheel of a car,” said Agjayan. “So you may remember where you were, how old you were, the person in the passenger seat explaining things to you, that feeling of excitement.”

Exercise that stimulates the heart has shown the potential to improve brain health, and experiments with mice have shown that it improves memory-but studies examining the same link in humans are mixed. increase.

To clarify the muddy sea of ​​scientific literature, the team scrutinized over 1,279 studies and ultimately narrowed them down to 36 studies that met specific criteria. We then used specialized software and a few Excel spreadsheets to transform the data information in a format that allows us to directly compare different surveys.

The work was rewarded when it was found that pooling these 36 studies together was sufficient to show that exercise actually helped their memory for the elderly.A team of Psychology Agjayan advisor Kirk Erickson and other researchers from Pitt, Carnegie Mellon University, and the University of Iowa published their results in the journal. Communication medicine February 17th.

Previous analyzes of the relationship between exercise and memory did not find one, but Aghjayan and her team have several to maximize the chances of finding a link if it exists. You have performed additional steps. They limited their search to specific groups and age groups, and specific types of rigorous settings. Another important point was to focus specifically on episodic memory. Episodic memory is supported by parts of the brain that are known to benefit from exercise.

“By merging all this data together, we can see about 3,000 participants,” said Aghjayan. “Individual studies are very important. They all contribute to science in a meaningful way.” However, individual studies lack the resources to carry out experiments of sufficient size. , You may not be able to find the pattern that actually exists. Individual studies could not find a link between exercise and memory. To focus on the pattern, I had to look at the entire study.

The much larger number of participants allowed the team to show a link between exercise and episodic memory, but it was also able to answer more specific questions about who and how to benefit. ..

“We found that there was a greater improvement in memory among people between the ages of 55 and 68 compared to those between the ages of 69 and 85-so it is better to intervene early.” Said Aghjayan. The team also found the greatest benefits of exercise in people who have not yet experienced cognitive decline and in studies where participants exercised consistently several times a week.

I have a question that hasn’t been answered yet. Team analysis cannot answer how the intensity of exercise affects the benefits of memory, and there is much to learn about the mechanisms behind the link. However, the impact on public health is clear. Exercise is an accessible way for older people to stop memory loss and benefit themselves, their caretakers, and the health care system.

“You just need good walking shoes, and you can get out there and move your body.”

Co-authors of the paper include Kirk Erickson, Cerion Khan, Schuepin Chow, Chelsea Stillman, Shannon Donoffrey, Thomas W. Kamalck, Anna L. Maasland, Scott H. Froundluff of the University of Pittsburgh, Includes Temist Cruz Brunias of Carnegie Mellon University and Michelle Boss of the University. Iowa.

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material Provided by University of Pittsburgh.. Original written by Pat Monahan. Note: Content can be edited in style and length.