Long-term cumulative physical activity associated with less cognitive decline: Evidence from a 16-year cohort study.

INTRODUCTION: Physical activity (PA) has been reported to delay cognitive decline. However, the role of long-term, cumulative PA (cPA) in cognitive decline remains unclear.

METHODS: This longitudinal study obtained data from Health and Retirement Study, 2004-2020. Global cognition was operationalized as the sum of memory and executive function scores on a battery of cognitive tests. cPA was operationalized as the area under the curve of the metabolic equivalent of tasks (MET) adjusted PA. Generalized linear mixed models were fitted to examine the associations between cPA and cognitive change.

RESULTS: This study included 13,450 cognitively healthy participants, with a mean follow-up duration of 11.06 (SD=4.91) years. Higher cPA was associated with delayed declines in global cognition (p<.001), memory (p<.001) and executive function (p<.001), and such protective benefits grew over the 16-year study period. Longer PA engagement was associated with progressively delayed cognitive decline.

CONCLUSION: PA engagement over long timeframes may better maintain cognitive performance.