The purpose of this study was to investigate the earliest effects of low-intensity home-based exercise on various domains of cognitive function and physical performance in persons with MCI, by comparing three groups: aerobic exercise, resistance exercise and control group.
This study was a single-blind randomized controlled trial. A total of ninety eligible participants, aged 60 to 80 years, were randomly assigned into one of three groups, each consisting of 30 participants: aerobic exercise, resistance exercise or control group. The aerobic and resistance exercise groups received three months of home-based exercise, consisting of 35 minutes/day (including warm up and cool down), five days/week, with the duration increasing by five minutes every two weeks. The control group was instructed to continue their usual daily activities. Cognitive and physical performance assessments were conducted using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (Thai version) (MoCA); Trail-making test part A and B (TMT-A, TMT-B), Stroop color and word test (SCWT), Digit span test (DST), Stick design test (SDT), Timed up and go test with manual task (TUG-M), 6-minute walk test (6MWT) and 30-second chair stand test. These measurements were collected prior to and during the one, two, and three-month exercise periods.
Both the aerobic and resistance exercise groups revealed significant improvements in MoCA, SCWT and TUG-M after the second month of exercise program participation, while no significant changes were observed in other variables during the one- or two-month exercise program. Additionally, the aerobic group presented a significant improvement in the 6MWT, while the resistance group showed notable increases in performance on the 30-second chair stand test at two months post-exercise. The effect sizes of all outcome variables within groups ranged from 0.47 to 0.62 and from 0.34 to 0.62 for the aerobic and resistance groups, respectively. In contrast, the control group did not demonstrate any improvement in cognitive and physical performance within the first 2 months. By 3 months, both the aerobic and resistance groups showed significant improvements in all measured variables except for the SDT.
This study verified that low intensity aerobic and resistance exercises performed at home can enhance cognitive function in older adults with MCI, specifically in the domains of executive function, attention and memory. Improvements in cognitive function, as measured by MoCA and SCWT, were observed as early as two months post-exercise program.
These results highlight that access to low-intensity home-based exercise for at least two months can positively impact cognitive function in community-dwelling older adults.
Light exercise
Cognition
