Aguiñaga Susan, Kaushal Navin, Balbim Guilherme M, Wilson Robert S, Wilbur JoEllen E, Hughes Susan, Buchner David M, Berbaum Michael, McAuley Edward, Vásquez Priscilla M, Marques Isabela G, Wang Tianxiu, Marquez David X
Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, United States.
Department of Health Sciences, Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN, United States.
Front Aging Neurosci. 2022 Apr 15;14:755154. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2022.755154. eCollection 2022.
Physical activity (PA) is a promising method to improve cognition among middle-aged and older adults. Latinos are at high risk for cognitive decline and engaging in low levels of PA. Culturally relevant PA interventions for middle-aged and older Latinos are critically needed to reduce risk of cognitive decline. We examined changes in cognitive performance among middle-aged and older Latinos participating in the BAILAMOS™ dance program or a health education group and compared the mediating effects of PA between group assignment and change in cognitive domains.
Our 8-month randomized controlled trial tested BAILAMOS™, a 4-month Latin dance program followed by a 4-month maintenance phase. A total of 333 older Latinos aged 55+ were randomized to either BAILAMOS™, or to a health education control group. Neuropsychological tests were administered, scores were converted to z-scores, and specific domains (i.e., executive function, episodic memory, and working memory) were derived. Self-reported PA was assessed, and we reported categories of total PA, total leisure PA, and moderate-to-vigorous PA as minutes/week. A series of ANCOVAs tested changes in cognitive domains at 4 and 8 months. A mediation analysis tested the mediating effects of each PA category between group assignment and a significant change in cognition score.
The ANCOVAs found significant improvement in working memory scores among participants in the dance group at month 8 [ = 5.79, = 0.017, = 0.20], but not in executive functioning [ = 0.229, = 0.80, Cohen's = 0.07] or episodic memory [ = 0.241, = 0.78, Cohen's = 0.05]. Follow-up mediation models found that total PA mediated the relationship between group assignment and working memory, in favor of the dance group (β = 0.027, 95% CI [0.0000, 0.0705]). Similarly, total leisure PA was found to mediate this relationship [β = 0.035, 95% CI (0.0041, 0.0807)].
A 4-month Latin dance program followed by a 4-month maintenance phase improved working memory among middle-aged and older Latinos. Improvements in working memory were mediated by participation in leisure PA. Our results support the current literature that leisure time PA influences cognition and highlight the importance of culturally relevant PA modalities for Latinos.
[www.ClinicalTrials.gov], identifier [NCT01988233].
体育活动（PA）是改善中老年人群认知功能的一种很有前景的方法。拉丁裔人群认知能力下降风险较高且体育活动水平较低。迫切需要针对中老年拉丁裔人群开展具有文化相关性的体育活动干预措施，以降低认知能力下降的风险。我们研究了参与BAILAMOS™舞蹈项目或健康教育组的中老年拉丁裔人群认知表现的变化，并比较了分组与认知领域变化之间PA的中介作用。
我们进行了一项为期8个月的随机对照试验，测试BAILAMOS™，这是一个为期4个月的拉丁舞项目，随后是4个月的维持阶段。共有333名55岁及以上的老年拉丁裔被随机分为BAILAMOS™组或健康教育对照组。进行了神经心理学测试，将分数转换为z分数，并得出特定领域（即执行功能、情景记忆和工作记忆）的分数。评估了自我报告的PA情况，我们报告了总PA、总休闲PA以及中度至剧烈PA的类别，以分钟/周为单位。一系列协方差分析测试了4个月和8个月时认知领域的变化。中介分析测试了每个PA类别在分组与认知分数显著变化之间的中介作用。
协方差分析发现，舞蹈组参与者在第8个月时工作记忆分数有显著改善[F = 5.79，P = 0.017，η² = 0.20]，但执行功能[F = 0.229，P = 0.80，科恩d = 0.07]或情景记忆[F = 0.241，P = 0.78，科恩d = 0.05]方面没有改善。后续的中介模型发现，总PA介导了分组与工作记忆之间的关系，有利于舞蹈组（β = 0.027，95%CI[0.0000，0.0705]）。同样，发现总休闲PA介导了这种关系[β = 0.035，95%CI（0.0041，0.0807）]。
一个为期4个月的拉丁舞项目，随后是4个月的维持阶段，改善了中老年拉丁裔人群的工作记忆。工作记忆的改善是通过参与休闲PA介导的。我们的结果支持了当前关于休闲时间PA影响认知的文献，并强调了针对拉丁裔人群具有文化相关性的PA方式的重要性。
