Household physical activity is positively associated with gray matter volume in older adults

Abstract Background Total physical activity is positively associated with brain volume and cognition in older adults. While we have ample evidence that recreational physical activity influences brain health, the contributions of other daily activities are less understood. In particular, the associations between household physical activity and brain health in older adults is underexplored. The purpose of this study was to identify associations between household physical activity, brain volume, and cognition in a sample of cognitively unimpaired older adults. Methods We report data from 66 cognitively unimpaired older adults (71 ± 4 years) who participated in a health evaluation, cognitive assessment, and structural brain imaging. Physical activity was assessed using the Phone-FITT questionnaire and separated into household and recreational physical activity. We quantified whole brain volume, gray matter volume, and white matter volume, and assessed cognitive performance in four domains: memory, working memory/attention, processing speed, and executive function. Associations between physical activity, brain volume, and cognition were investigated in an omnibus approach using two multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) models. The first model assessed the associations between physical activity and brain volume adjusting for age, sex, Framingham Risk score (FRS) and intracranial volume. The second model assessed the associations between physical activity and overall cognitive performance adjusting for age, sex, FRS and education. Post hoc regression analyses were conducted to investigate significant MANOVA results. We also conducted further regression analyses to investigate associations with hippocampal and frontal lobe volume. Results Household, but not recreational, physical activity was positively associated with brain volume measurements (F = 3.07, p = .035), specifically gray matter volume (t = 2.51, p = .015). Further exploratory analyses identified that household physical activity was associated with hippocampal (p = .015) and frontal lobe (p = .010) volume. No significant relationships were observed between household or recreational physical activity and cognition. Conclusion Time spent engaging in household physical activity was positively associated with brain volume, specifically gray matter volume, in older adults. Highlighting the benefits associated with household chores may motivate older adults to be more active by providing a more attainable, low risk form of physical activity.

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Supplemental Material for Salient Measures of Inhibition and Switching Are Associated With Frontal Lobe Gray Matter Volume in Healthy Middle-Aged and Older Adults

Neuropsychology ◽

10.1037/neu0000082.supp ◽

2014 ◽

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Frontal Lobe ◽

Gray Matter ◽

Gray Matter Volume ◽

Middle Aged ◽

Matter Volume

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Faculty Opinions recommendation of Physical activity predicts gray matter volume in late adulthood: the Cardiovascular Health Study.

Faculty Opinions – Post-Publication Peer Review of the Biomedical Literature ◽

10.3410/f.6509957.6638057 ◽

2010 ◽

Author(s):

Conrado Estol

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Gray Matter ◽

Cardiovascular Health ◽

Gray Matter Volume ◽

Health Study ◽

Cardiovascular Health Study ◽

Late Adulthood ◽

Matter Volume

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Voxel-based correlation of 18F-THK5351 accumulation and gray matter volume in the brain of cognitively normal older adults

EJNMMI Research ◽

10.1186/s13550-019-0552-3 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Yoko Shigemoto ◽

Daichi Sone ◽

Miho Ota ◽

Norihide Maikusa ◽

Masayo Ogawa ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Gray Matter ◽

Gray Matter Volume ◽

Cognitively Normal ◽

Matter Volume ◽

The Brain

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Housing quality and behavior affect brain health and anxiety in healthy Japanese adults

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-91363-4 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Juan Cesar D. Pineda ◽

Keisuke Kokubun ◽

Toshiharu Ikaga ◽

Yoshinori Yamakawa

Keyword(s):

Sedentary Behavior ◽

Fractional Anisotropy ◽

Gray Matter ◽

Gray Matter Volume ◽

Housing Quality ◽

Valuable Insight ◽

Brain Health ◽

Matter Volume ◽

Japanese Adults ◽

The Relationship

AbstractCountless studies in animals have shown how housing environments and behaviors can significantly affect anxiety and brain health, giving valuable insight as to whether this is applicable in the human context. The relationship between housing, behavior, brain health, and mental wellbeing in humans remains poorly understood. We therefore explored the interaction of housing quality, weekend/holiday sedentary behavior, brain structure, and anxiety in healthy Japanese adults. Whole-brain structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) methods based on gray matter volume and fractional anisotropy were used as markers for brain health. Correlation tests were conducted, and then adjusted for multiple comparisons using the False Discovery Rate method. Housing quality and weekend/holiday sedentary behavior were associated with fractional anisotropy, but not with gray matter volume. Fractional anisotropy showed significant associations with anxiety. Lastly, both weekend/holiday sedentary behavior and housing quality were indirectly associated with anxiety through fractional anisotropy. These results add to the limited evidence surrounding the relationship among housing, behavior, and the brain. Furthermore, these results show that behavior and housing qualities can have an indirect impact on anxiety through neurobiological markers such as fractional anisotropy.

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Alterations of frontal-temporal gray matter volume associate with clinical measures of older adults with COVID-19

Neurobiology of Stress ◽

10.1016/j.ynstr.2021.100326 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 100326

Author(s):

Kuaikuai Duan ◽

Enrico Premi ◽

Andrea Pilotto ◽

Viviana Cristillo ◽

Alberto Benussi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Gray Matter ◽

Gray Matter Volume ◽

Matter Volume ◽

Clinical Measures

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Gray Matter Volume Covariance Networks, Social Support, and Cognition in Older Adults

The Journals of Gerontology Series B ◽

10.1093/geronb/gbz023 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 75 (6) ◽

pp. 1219-1229 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Kelly Cotton ◽

Joe Verghese ◽

Helena M Blumen

Keyword(s):

Social Support ◽

Older Adults ◽

Executive Function ◽

Gray Matter ◽

Gray Matter Volume ◽

Neural Substrates ◽

Functional Health ◽

Matter Volume ◽

With Memory ◽

Gray Matter Network

Abstract Objective We examined the neural substrates of social support in older adults. Social support is associated with better outcomes in many facets of aging—including cognitive and functional health—but the underlying neural substrates remain largely unexplored. Methods Voxel-based morphometry and multivariate statistics were used to identify gray matter volume covariance networks associated with social support in 112 older adults without dementia (M age = 74.6 years, 50% female), using the Medical Outcomes Study Social Support Survey. Results A gray matter network associated with overall social support was identified and included prefrontal, hippocampal, amygdala, cingulate, and thalamic regions. A gray matter network specifically associated with tangible social support (e.g., someone to help you if you were confined to bed) was also identified, included prefrontal, hippocampal, cingulate, insular, and thalamic regions, and correlated with memory and executive function. Discussion Gray matter networks associated with overall and tangible social support in this study were composed of regions previously associated with memory, executive function, aging, and dementia. Longitudinal research of the interrelationships between social support, brain structure, and cognition is needed, but strengthening social support may represent a new path toward improving cognition in aging that should be explored.

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Gray matter volume covariance networks associated with social networks in older adults

Social Neuroscience ◽

10.1080/17470919.2018.1535999 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 14 (5) ◽

pp. 559-570 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Helena M. Blumen ◽

Joe Verghese

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Social Networks ◽

Gray Matter ◽

Gray Matter Volume ◽

Matter Volume

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Senior Dance Experience, Cognitive Performance, and Brain Volume in Older Women

Neural Plasticity ◽

10.1155/2016/9837321 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 2016 ◽

pp. 1-10 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Claudia Niemann ◽

Ben Godde ◽

Claudia Voelcker-Rehage

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Older Adults ◽

Cognitive Functioning ◽

Older Women ◽

Cognitive Performance ◽

Gray Matter ◽

Brain Volume ◽

Fitness Level ◽

Motor Fitness

Physical activity is positively related to cognitive functioning and brain volume in older adults. Interestingly, different types of physical activity vary in their effects on cognition and on the brain. For example, dancing has become an interesting topic in aging research, as it is a popular leisure activity among older adults, involving cardiovascular and motor fitness dimensions that can be positively related to cognition. However, studies on brain structure are missing. In this study, we tested the association of long-term senior dance experience with cognitive performance and gray matter brain volume in older women aged 65 to 82 years. We compared nonprofessional senior dancers (n=28) with nonsedentary control group participants without any dancing experience (n=29), who were similar in age, education, IQ score, lifestyle and health factors, and fitness level. Differences neither in the four tested cognitive domains (executive control, perceptual speed, episodic memory, and long-term memory) nor in brain volume (VBM whole-brain analysis, region-of-interest analysis of the hippocampus) were observed. Results indicate that moderate dancing activity (1-2 times per week, on average) has no additional effects on gray matter volume and cognitive functioning when a certain lifestyle or physical activity and fitness level are reached.

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Association of Sleep, Neuropsychological Performance, and Gray Matter Volume With Glymphatic Function in Community-Dwelling Older Adults

Neurology ◽

10.1212/wnl.0000000000013215 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 10.1212/WNL.0000000000013215

Author(s):

Tiing Yee Siow ◽

Cheng Hong Toh ◽

Jung-Lung Hsu ◽

Geng-Hao Liu ◽

Shwu-Hua Lee ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Gray Matter ◽

Gray Matter Volume ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Intracranial Volume ◽

Waste Products ◽

Glymphatic System ◽

Matter Volume ◽

Gray Matter Volumes ◽

Community Dwelling Older Adults

Background and Objectives:The glymphatic system, which is robustly enabled during some stages of sleep, is a fluid-transport pathway that clears cerebral waste products. Most contemporary knowledge regarding glymphatic system is inferred from rodent experiments and human research is limited. The objective of the research is to explore the associations between human glymphatic function, sleep, neuropsychological performances, and cerebral gray matter volumes.Methods:This cross-sectional study included individuals 60 years or older who had participated in the Integrating Systemic Data of Geriatric Medicine to Explore the Solution for Health Aging study between September 2019 and October 2020. Community-dwelling older adults were enrolled at 2 different sites. Participants with dementia, major depressive disorders, and other major organ system abnormalities were excluded. Sleep profile was accessed using questionnaires and polysomnography. Administered neuropsychological test batteries included Everyday Cognition (ECog) and the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer’s Disease Neuropsychological Battery (CERAD-NB). Gray matter volumes were estimated based on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Diffusion tensor imaging-analysis along the perivascular space (DTI-ALPS) index was used as the MRI marker of glymphatic function.Results:A total of 84 participants (mean [SD] age, 73.3 [7.1] years, 47 [56.0%] women) were analyzed. Multivariate linear regression model determined that age (unstandardized β, -0.0025 [SE, 0.0001]; P = 0.02), N2 sleep duration (unstandardized β, 0.0002 [SE, 0.0001]; P = 0.04), and the apnea-hypopnea index (unstandardized β, -0.0011 [SE, 0.0005]; P = 0.03) were independently associated with DTI-ALPS. Higher DTI-ALPS was associated with better ECog language scores (unstandardized β, -0.59 [SE, 0.28]; P = 0.04) and better CERAD-NB word-list-learning delayed recall subtest scores (unstandardized β, 6.17 [SE, 2.31]; P = 0.009) after co-varying for age and education. Higher DTI-ALPS was also associated with higher gray matter volume (unstandardized β, 107.00 [SE, 43.65]; P = 0.02) after controlling for age, gender, and total intracranial volume.Discussion:Significant associations were identified between glymphatic function and sleep stressing the importance of sleep for brain health. This study also revealed associations between DTI-ALPS, neuropsychological performances, and cerebral gray matter volumes suggesting the potential of DTI-ALPS as a biomarker for cognitive disorders.

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