A brisk walk, a splash of water aerobics, or even a light jog around the block -- if your heart rate goes up then so too will your brain health according to new research from the University of South Australia.
Conducted in partnership with the US-based AdventHealth Research Institute, the new study found that staying active through moderate-to-vigorous physical activity is associated with significantly better processing speed, working memory, and executive function in older adults.
Interestingly, the biggest cognitive gains were seen among people who went from doing no moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, to even doing just five minutes, clearly illustrating the power of exercise for the human brain.
Assessing data from 585 older adults (aged 65-80 years) in the USA-based IGNITE trial*, the study examined associations between time spent in sleep, sedentary behaviour, light physical activity, and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity across the 24-hr day, and cognitive performance.
