Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2007 Feb-Mar;22(1):62-77.
doi: 10.1177/1533317506295377.

Language-enriched exercise plus socialization slows cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease

Sharon Arkin  1
Affiliations

Language-enriched exercise plus socialization slows cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease

Sharon Arkin. Am J Alzheimers Dis Other Demen. 2007 Feb-Mar.

Abstract

This article reports the effects of language-enriched physical fitness interventions provided by University of Arizona undergraduate students to 24 mild- to moderate-stage Alzheimer's disease patients (AD Rehab group). Socialization experiences consisted of supervised volunteer work and cultural/recreational activities. Changes in global functioning and neuropsychological test performance were tracked and compared to those of a similar group of untreated patients from the Consortium for the Establishment of a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease (CERAD). Cohorts completing 4 semesters or longer showed no significant between-year changes after their first year on the Clinical Dementia Rating, a measure of global functioning, and on 5 or 6 of the cognitive and language measures. Comparisons with the CERAD sample suggested a slower rate of decline for the AD Rehab group. The stabilization of global and cognitive performance was not apparent among participants who completed only 2 semesters. Significant physical fitness and mood outcomes were previously reported in this journal.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. McKhann G, Albert M. Keep Your Brain Young. New York, NY: John Wiley; 2002.
    1. Evans W, Rosenberg IH. Biomarkers: The Ten Determinants of Aging You Can Control. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster; 1991.
    1. Laurin D, Verreault R, Lindsay J, MacPherson K, Rockwood K. (2001). Physical activity and risk of cognitive impairment and dementia in elderly persons. Archives of Neurology. 2001; 58: 498-504 - PubMed
    1. Friedland RP, Smyth KA, Rowland DY. Pre-morbid activities are reduced in patients with Alzheimer’s disease as compared to age- and sex-matched controls: results of a case-control study. In: Iqbal K, Winblad B, Nishimura T, Takeda M, Wisniewski HM, eds. Alzheimer’s Disease: Biology, Diagnosis and Therapeutics. New York, NY: John Wiley; 1997.
    1. Yaffe K, Barnes D, Nevitt M, Lui LY, Covinsky KR. A prospective study of physical activity and cognitive decline in elderly women who walk. Arch Intern Med. 2001; 161: 1703-1708. - PubMed

MeSH terms