Cross-sectional and Longitudinal Association between Accelerometer-Measured Light-Intensity Physical Activity and Cognitive Function in Older Adults

Jing-Han Jhan ¹ Jiaren Chen ¹ Ting-Fu Lai ^1,2 Jong-Hwan Park ^2* Yung Liao ^1,3*

• ¹ Graduate Institute of Sports, Leisure and Hospitality Management, College of Sports and Recreation, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan
• ² Biomedical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, Busan, South Sudan
• ³ Faculty of Sport Sciences, Waseda University, Tokorozawa, Saitama, Japan

Objective: MVPA is well-established as beneficial for improving cognitive function in older adults. Recent research focuses on the benefits of LPA on cognitive function due to safety and mobility concerns. However, limited research has utilized different domains of cognitive examination scales to analyze the relationship between LPA and different domains of cognitive function and compare the cross-sectional and longitudinal results. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the cross-sectional and longitudinal association between LPA and both overall and domain-specific cognitive function in older Taiwanese adults.Methods: This longitudinal study recruited participants (community-dwelling older adults aged ≥65 years who could walk independently) in an outpatient department of geriatrics and gerontology in a medical center in Taipei City, Taiwan. Data was collected from September 2020 to 2021, with follow-up data collected until December 2022. Baseline sedentary behavior (<100 counts/min), LPA (100-2019 counts/min) and MVPA (≥2020 counts/min) were measured with GT3X+ triaxial accelerometers. Cognitive functions were assessed using the Chinese MMSE at baseline and follow-up. Binary logistic regression analyzed the association between 3 h/day of LPA and cognitive functions. Baseline variables included overall cognitive impairment and maximum domain-specific MMSE scores. Follow-up variables were the maintenance or increase of overall and domain-specific MMSE scores. Results: A total of 167 participants were included (52.10% female; 76.11±6.47 years). The cross-sectional analysis results indicated that in the adjusted model, both overall and domain-specific cognitive functions were not significantly associated with ≥3 h/day of LPA. The longitudinal analysis results indicated that in the adjusted model, ≥3 h/day of LPA was significantly negatively associated with the maintenance or increase of language (OR: 0.88; 95% CI: 0.01-0.99; P=0.049), and significantly positively associated with the maintenance or increase of orientation (OR: 3.83; 95% CI: 1.01-14.46; P=0.048).The cross-sectional and longitudinal impacts of engaging in ≥3 h/day of LPA on cognitive functions differed. While engaging in ≥3 h/day of LPA has no significant short-term benefits, performing ≥3 h/day of LPA is beneficial for maintaining or improving orientation cognitive function in long term. Further studies should explore the longitudinal relationship between LPA and orientation cognitive function to provide a more comprehensive understanding of their potential interactions.