The Relationship between Physical Activity and Cognitive Performance in African American Older Adults

The number of older adults in the United States is expected to increase in the years to come. As
we age, cognitive performance is noted to decline. African American older adults are more likely
than non-Hispanic Whites to experience cognitive impairment and dementia. It is known that
physical activity is a modifiable risk factor for dementia. It is not known the extent to which
physical activity engagement is related to cognitive performance in African American older
adults, and which variables, if any, moderate this association. To answer this question, the
authors examined the association between three intensities of physical activity (mild, moderate,
and vigorous) at two levels per intensity (between-person and within-person) and four domains
of cognitive performance (episodic memory, working memory, total mental status, and total
cognition). Data was analyzed at five time points using ten years of data from the Health and
Retirement Study (HRS). Results indicated that greater engagement in physical activity was
associated with greater cognitive performance across a variety of domains. Younger age, higher
years of education, and female gender moderated this association. Implications from this study
indicate the effectiveness of engaging in a contextual factor of cognitive decline with regard to
higher cognitive performance in minority older adults. Of note, an increase in physical activity
engagement at different time points was associated with higher cognitive performance, indicating
that the positive association between physical activity and cognition can be observed for
individuals who initially do not engage in physical activity