THE GUARDIAN – For cycle-to-work commuters and those who start the day with a brisk walk, the benefits of banking some early exercise is well understood.
Now scientists believe activity is not just a good idea for improving the day ahead – physical activity could be associated with small increase in memory scores the next, too.
A study from University College London has shown that 30 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity and sleeping for at least six hours at night, could contribute to improved cognitive performance the following day.
“The takeaway is just [that] physical activity is good for your brain and good sleep helps that,” said Dr Mikaela Bloomberg, first author of the study.
The researchers noted physical activity had previously been associated with both short-term improvements in cognitive function and a reduced risk of dementia.
However, Bloomberg noted many studies looking at short-term impacts had been laboratory based, and primarily tracked responses on a timescale of minutes to hours. These studies suggested benefits could be down to an increased blood flow to the brain and stimulation of chemicals known as neurotransmitters.
Now researchers say they have looked at the short-term impact of physical activity carried out in real life, not only finding benefits to the brain but revealing these appear to last longer than expected.
Writing in the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, Bloomberg and colleagues report how 76 adults aged 50-83 years old, and who did not have cognitive impairment or dementia, were asked to wear an accelerometer for eight days to track their sleep and physical activity as they carried out their normal life.
Each day, participants were also given simple online cognitive tests to probe their attention, memory and processing speed, among other faculties …
