A research team at University College London (UCL) has identified a link between lifelong physical activity and neuroprotective changes in the brain, potentially reducing the risk of dementia. The findings, published in Brain Communications, come from Insight46, a longitudinal study funded by Alzheimer’s Research UK and the Medical Research Council (MRC), which tracks the health of individuals born in the same week of 1946 across England, Scotland, and Wales.
Key Findings: Exercise, Brain Structure, and Cognitive Function
Dr Sarah-Naomi James and her team at the UCL Dementia Research Centre and MRC Unit for Lifelong Health and Ageing at UCL analysed decades of physical activity data alongside structural brain imaging at age 70. Their results provide insight into how exercise influences cognitive resilience, particularly in individuals at risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
- Hippocampal Volume and Memory Protection: Regular leisure-time physical activity before age 50 was associated with larger hippocampal volume at age 70. Given that hippocampal atrophy is an early hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease, these findings suggest a potential neuroprotective mechanism against memory decline.
- Cognitive Resilience in the Presence of Alzheimer’s Pathology: Participants who maintained physical activity across life showed reduced cognitive decline, even when presenting with Alzheimer’s-associated biomarkers such as amyloid-β deposition or cortical atrophy.
- Sex-Specific Effects: Women appeared particularly sensitive to the impact of physical activity. Those with early Alzheimer’s-related neurodegeneration exhibited exacerbated cognitive impairment if they had been inactive throughout life. However, regular exercise—especially in early life—attenuated these negative associations.
Dr James commented:
“Exercise is essential for keeping our brains healthy. But we are still building a picture around what physical changes happen in the brain to protect it against dementia.
Insight46 has given us valuable clues to what changes are happening in the brain, opening new exciting research avenues.”
We found suggestive evidence that women with early markers of Alzheimer’s disease-related neurodegeneration were most sensitive to leisure time physical activity patterns: a lifetime of inactivity in women exacerbated the manifestation of early Alzheimer’s disease markers (Aβ and cortical thickness-related cognition), yet, if women were active across life or early in life, it mostly buffered these negative relationships.
https://academic.oup.com/braincomms/article/7/1/fcae431/7933115?
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