Exercise and Intellectual Activities Beneficial

A systematic review found that exercising for at least 52 hours (averaging about an hour, 3 times a week) is associated with improved cognitive performance in older adults with and without cognitive impairment. Another population-based study in Chinese suggested that active participation in intellectual activities might help prevent dementia in older adults. The review included 98 randomized clinical trials with a total of 11061 participants (mean age 73, 67.6% female). Exercise modes supported by evidence are aerobic, resistance (strength) training, mind–body exercises, or combinations of these interventions. The other longitudinal observational study included 15 582 Chinese (63.9% women, the median age at baseline 74 years) with a median follow-up period of 5.0 years. Intellectual activities included reading books, newspapers, or magazines; playing board games, Mahjong, or card games; and betting on horse racing. Source: http://cp.neurology.org/; https://jamanetwork.com/