The Effect of an 8-Week Aerobic Dance Program on Executive Function in Children

In the current study, we examined the effect of an aerobic dance program as part of physical education (PE) classes on aspects of primary school children’s executive functions (EFs) (inhibition, working memory, and cognitive flexibility). Participants were 41 children (21 boys and 20 girls; M age =10.30, SD = 0.50 years, M height = 134.09, SD= 3.9 cm; M weight = 35.61, SD = 7.85 kg) who were divided into an experimental group (EG) and a no-PE control group (CG). The EG followed an aerobic dance intervention as part of their PE program (45 minute sessions two days per week over eight weeks). Participants in both groups performed EF tests before and after the intervention period to evaluate their mental flexibility, inhibition, and working memory. A two-way mixed model repeated measures ANOVA revealed a significant effect of the aerobic dance program on participants’ cognitive flexibility (i.e., on Trails Making Tests B-A times and committed errors) ( p <0.001), and on Stroop measures of inhibition (corrected number of words and corrected errors) ( p <0.001 and p <0.01, respectively), with post-hoc analyses showing an improved performance by the EG in working memory (digit recall score) from pre-test to post-test and in comparsion to the CG ( p < 0.001). Thus, this 8-week aerobic dance program promoted EF development among primary school children.

Comparison Between the Effects of Continuous and Intermittent Light-Intensity Aerobic Dance Exercise on Mood and Executive Functions in Older Adults

There is a growing body of evidence suggesting that one bout of moderate-intensity exercise enhances executive functions in older adults. However, in terms of safety, feasibility, and continuity, older individuals prefer light, easy, and fun exercises to moderate and stressful exercises for improving executive functions. Therefore, light-intensity aerobic dance exercise (LADE) could be suitable if it produces potential benefits related to executive functions. As for continuous vs. intermittent exercise, intermittent exercise has received a lot of attention, as it results in greater effects on mood and executive functions than continuous exercise; however, its effects in older adults remain uncertain. Thus, in this study, we aimed to examine the acute effects of intermittent LADE (I-LADE) in comparison with those of continuous LADE (C-LADE) on mood and executive functions. Fifteen healthy older adults participated in 10-min I-LADE and C-LADE conditions on separate days. Perceived enjoyment following exercise was assessed using the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES). The pleasantness of the mood during exercise and pleasure and arousal levels after exercise were assessed using the Feeling Scale and Two-Dimensional Mood Scale, respectively. Executive function was assessed using the Stroop task before and after exercise. As a result, pleasantness of the mood during exercise and exercise enjoyment levels were greater in I-LADE than in C-LADE. Arousal and pleasure levels and Stroop task performance increased after both LADEs and did not differ between the two exercise conditions. These findings suggest that although enhancement of mood and executive functions after exercise did not differ between C-LADE and I-LADE, I-LADE could be more enjoyable and fun than C-LADE. This study will help in the development of exercise conditions that can enable the elderly to enhance their executive functions in a fun way.

COMPARATIVE STUDY OF CIRCUIT AND AEROBIC DANCE TRAINING IN NUTRITIONAL STATUS AND BODY FAT OF OVERWEIGHT URBAN SCHOOL GIRLS

Centering upon the suffering from chronic energy deciency due to overweight and high body fat is very common problem in urban school girls of our society. In present days, in this pandemic situation, a compulsion practice and system of staying inside the home and intake of more amount of food without having any physical exercise, gives the gift birth of overweight status of our children. From this point of view, the researcher intends to investigate a comparative study of circuit and aerobic dance training programmes to reduce body fat and for adopting heathy weight and BMI and also to investigate which programme is more effective. Ninety, seventh and eight standard obese girls of Kalitala girls high school (N = 45) and Mission Girls High School (N = 45) mean age (13+1) years of Bankura district of West Bengal, India were randomly selected as the subjects for the study. For experimental purpose total ninety subjects were sub-divided systematically on the basis of over-weight status into three equal groups (n = 30). The circuit training and aerobic dance programs were randomly assigned to two groups which were designated as experimental groups: Group A (Circuit Training) and Group B (Aerobic Dance) and were imparted 12 weeks of circuit training and aerobic dance training programs, respectively whereas the remaining group was designated as the control group (Group C). Result showed that greater contributory effects of aerobic dance program in developing healthy BMI of overweight school girls than that of circuit training program.

Efficacy of Physiotherapy Treatment in Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Primary dysmenorrhea (PD) refers to painful cramps before and/or during menstruation. There is a need for emphasis on alternative methods of conservative treatment, so as to reduce the dependence on drugs for alleviating the symptoms. The aim was to find out the effectiveness of some physiotherapy techniques in the treatment of PD. A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted according to PRISMA standards. The descriptors were “dysmenorrhea”, “physical the-rapy”, “physiotherapy”, and “manual therapy”. The search was performed in five databases: Scopus, PubMed, PEDro, Web of Science, and Medline, in February 2021. The inclusion criteria were randomized controlled trials over the last six years. Articles not related to the treatment of PD or using pharmacology as the main treatment were excluded. Nine articles met the objectives and criteria, with a total of 692 participants. The most used scale to measure pain was the VAS (visual analogue scale). The main techniques were isometric exercises, massage therapy, yoga, electrotherapy, connective tissue manipulation, stretching, kinesio tape, progressive relaxation exercises and aerobic dance. Meta-analysis shows benefits of physiotherapy treatment for pain relief compared with no intervention or placebo (MD: −1.13, 95% CI: −1.61 to −0.64, I2: 88%). The current low-quality evidence suggests that physiotherapy may provide a clinically significant reduction in menstrual pain intensity. Given the overall health benefits of physiotherapy and the low risk of side effects reported, women may consider using it, either alone or in conjunction with other therapeutic modalities.

The Effects of Three Months of Aerobic Dance on Hippocampal Volume and Cognition in Elderly People with Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Whether dancing could increases the hippocampal volume of seniors with amnestic mild cognitive impairment(aMCI) remains debatable. The aim of the present study was to investigate the influence of aerobic dance on hippocampal volume and cognition after three months' aerobic dance in older adults with aMCI. In this randomized controlled trial, 68 elderly people with aMCI were randomized to either aerobic dance group or the control group using 1:1 allocation ratio. Specially designed aerobic dance routine was performed by the dance group three times a week for three months, while all participants received monthly health care education after inclusion. MRI with a 3.0 T MRI scanner and cognitive assessments were performed before and after intervention. The high-resolution 3D T1-weighted anatomical images were acquired for the analysis of hippocampal volume. A total of 35 participants (mean age: 71.51 ± 6.62 years) were randomized into aerobic dance group and 33(mean age:69.82 ± 7.74 years ) into control group, and all the data was analyzed based on the intention to treat (ITT) method. Patients in the treatment group showed increased volume in the right hippocampus (mean difference [MD] in right hippocampus volume over 3 months 0.13; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.05, 0.21; p<0.001) and memory enhancement (MD in Memory Scale-Revised Logical Memory change over 3 months 2.12; 95% CI -0.06, 4.13; p = 0.02) compared to the control group. In conclusion, three months of aerobic dance could increase the volume of right hippocampus and improve episodic memory in elderly persons with aMCI. This study was registered on the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (www.chictr.org.cn). Registration number：ChiCTR-INR-15007420.