Effects of Physical Exercise on Cognition and Telomere Length in Healthy Older Women

Background: Physical exercise is an effective measure for preventing the onset of cognitive decline and has a direct influence on the aging process. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of a 6-month physical exercise program on cognition and telomere length in adults over 65 years of a...

Descripción completa

Guardado en:
Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Juan Luis Sánchez-González, Juan Luis Sánchez-Rodríguez, Javier Martín-Vallejo, Abel Martel-Martel, Rogelio González-Sarmiento
Formato: article
Lenguaje:EN
Publicado: MDPI AG 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://doaj.org/article/10b031b4356c4a79bc71c2be38df7ed5
Etiquetas: Agregar Etiqueta
Sin Etiquetas, Sea el primero en etiquetar este registro!
Descripción
Sumario:Background: Physical exercise is an effective measure for preventing the onset of cognitive decline and has a direct influence on the aging process. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of a 6-month physical exercise program on cognition and telomere length in adults over 65 years of age. Method: Seventy-four healthy women were separated into two groups: 41 were included in the intervention group (IG) (72.70 ± 4.127 years and 8.18 ± 1.551 years of education) and 33 in the control group (CG) (71.21 ± 4.127 years and 8.42 ± 2.562). The participants included within the IG carried out three sessions of physical exercise per week for six months. Cognitive function was assessed using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), the Stroop test and the Trail Making Test (TMT). Saliva samples were taken and analyzed and relative telomere length was calculated. Those conducting the analysis were blind to the group to which the participants had been assigned. Results: An improvement was observed in global cognitive function, in both attentional and executive functions, in the group of adults doing physical exercise as compared to the control group. Six months after the physical exercise program had finished, relative telomere length was found to have increased in the participants in the intervention group. Conclusion: Physical exercise programs can lead to an improvement in both cognitive functions and telomere length.