老人通過(guò)鍛煉可以提高思維能力嗎?

ShareTweetIt can be more difficult for seniors to exercise, but many studies have shown that regular exercise can be particularly beneficial. Not only does it increase energy and confer health benefits, it can also help to boost seniors’ thinking skills. Researchers reviewed studies that looked at seniors’ thinking and memory skills in response to regular exercise. The study has been published in Neurology® Clinical Practice, the American Academy of Neurology’s official journal.

老年人鍛煉身體比年輕人更困難。但大量研究表明，定期鍛煉極具益處——它不僅有益健康、增強(qiáng)體能，而且能夠提高老年人的思維能力。那么，定期鍛煉具體如何影響老年人的思維能力和記憶力呢?為探究此問(wèn)題，邁阿密大學(xué)米勒醫(yī)學(xué)院的研究人員考察了相關(guān)主題的大量研究。

Studies were included where seniors were asked to exercise for at least a month and their thinking and memory skills were compared to participants who did not exercise. In total, 98 studies were found that matched these criteria, involving 11,061 participants with an average age of 73. Most of the participants (58%) did not exercise regularly before becoming involved in the study. 59% of the participants were healthy adults, 26% had mild cognitive impairment, and 15% had dementia. The exercise session length, frequency, and total exercise amount were analysed. Aerobic exercise, such as walking, biking, and dancing, was the most common type of exercise.

研究人員挑選了符合如下標(biāo)準(zhǔn)的研究：比較連續(xù)鍛煉至少一個(gè)月的老年人和不鍛煉的老年人的思維能力和記憶力。他們總共挑選出98項(xiàng)符合標(biāo)準(zhǔn)的研究，總共涉及11,061個(gè)老年人，平均年齡為73歲。大部分參與者(58%)在研究開(kāi)始前沒(méi)有定期鍛煉身體的習(xí)慣。59%的參與者身體健康，26%有輕微的認(rèn)知障礙，15%患癡呆癥。研究人員分析了各項(xiàng)因素，如單次鍛煉時(shí)長(zhǎng)、鍛煉頻率、總鍛煉時(shí)間等。其中，有氧運(yùn)動(dòng)是最常見(jiàn)的鍛煉形式，包括走路、騎車、跳舞等。

The researchers found increased thinking skills in participants who exercised. Interestingly, the amount of weekly exercise did not play a role in shaping thinking skills. Instead, the number of hours of exercise and the length of each exercise session was important. Those who exercised for at least 52 hours over a period of 6 months, for about an hour each time, showed improvement. However, those who only exercised for 34 hours or less did not show any substantial improvement. It therefore seems important that seniors who want to improve their thinking skills exercise for the long haul.

分析結(jié)果顯示：鍛煉身體者的思維能力有所提升。但有趣的是：每周鍛煉量不影響思維能力，總鍛煉時(shí)間和單次鍛煉時(shí)長(zhǎng)才是重要影響因素?？傚憻挄r(shí)間達(dá)52小時(shí)、單次鍛煉時(shí)長(zhǎng)約1小時(shí)的人的思維能力有所提升;總鍛煉時(shí)間不超過(guò)34小時(shí)的人的思維能力沒(méi)有得到提升。看來(lái)，對(duì)老年人而言，若想提升思維能力，必須長(zhǎng)期堅(jiān)持鍛煉啊。

“These results suggest that a longer-term exercise program may be necessary to gain the benefits in thinking skills,” said study author Joyce Gomes-Osman, PT, PhD, of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine in Florida. “We were excited to see that even people who participated in lower intensity exercise programs showed a benefit to their thinking skills. Not everyone has the endurance or motivation to start a moderately intense exercise program, but everyone can benefit even from a less intense plan.”

研究人員Joyce Gomes-Osman表示：這些分析結(jié)果表明：也許只有長(zhǎng)期鍛煉才能夠增強(qiáng)思維能力。讓我們感到興奮的是：連低強(qiáng)度鍛煉項(xiàng)目也能夠提升思維能力。不是人人都有毅力或動(dòng)力進(jìn)行中等強(qiáng)度的鍛煉項(xiàng)目，但所有人都可以從哪怕低強(qiáng)度鍛煉中獲得益處。

Both healthy individuals and those with cognitive impairment benefited from long-term exercise. Their brains were able to process faster and take less time to perform mental tasks. This amount of exercise helped healthy people to manage time, focus, and achieve goals. Unfortunately, no link was found between exercise and improved memory skills.

無(wú)論是健康人還是存在認(rèn)知障礙的人，都能夠從長(zhǎng)期鍛煉中獲益。他們的大腦處理速度有所提高，能夠縮短完成智力任務(wù)的時(shí)間。長(zhǎng)期鍛煉能夠幫助健康人群管理時(shí)間、集中注意力、達(dá)成目標(biāo)。