Aerobic exercise boosts brain power, review finds

Dec. 13, 2012 — The physical benefits of regular exercise and remaining physically active, especially as we age, are well documented. However, it appears that it is not only the body which benefits from exercise, but the mind too. The evidence for this is published in a new review by Hayley Guiney and Liana Machado from the University of Otago, New Zealand, which focuses on the importance of physical activity in keeping and potentially improving cognitive function throughout life. Their review is published online in the Springer publication Psychonomic Bulletin & Review.

A certain amount of mental deterioration is expected with advancing age. However, this may not necessarily have to be the case as particular aspects of cognitive function such as task switching, selective attention and working memory among others, all appear to benefit from aerobic exercise. Studies in older adults reviewed by the authors consistently found that fitter individuals scored better in mental tests than their unfit peers. In addition, intervention studies found scores in mental tests improved in participants who were assigned to an aerobic exercise regimen compared to those assigned to stretch and tone classes.

Interestingly, these results were not replicated in children or young adults. The one area where physical fitness or regular exercise was found to have an effect on cognitive function in these age groups was for memory tasks. Both the updating of working memory and the volume of information which could be held was better in fitter individuals or those put on an aerobic exercise regime. The authors comment that despite physical fitness not affecting all areas of cognitive function in younger people, evidence is mounting that just because they are in their prime developmentally does not mean that they cannot benefit from regular exercise.

In older generations, the evidence for improvement in cognitive function is insurmountable. The types of tests of cognitive function reviewed here are important in showing that exercise may attenuate age-related decline for specific tasks. For example, it has been found to positively affect mental tasks relating to activities such as driving, an activity where age is often seen as a limiting factor.

The authors conclude that engagement in exercise can provide a simple means for people to optimize their cognitive function. They add that more research into the effects of exercise on young adults and children is required. However, they say that "the indications reported thus far -- that regular exercise can benefit brains even when they are in their prime developmentally -- warrant more rigorous investigation, particularly in the context of society becoming increasingly sedentary."

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Springer.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

Journal Reference:

Hayley Guiney, Liana Machado. Benefits of regular aerobic exercise for executive functioning in healthy populations. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 2012; DOI: 10.3758/s13423-012-0345-4

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

View the original article here

Hospital-based exercise programs benefit people with osteoarthritis, study finds

Nov. 10, 2012 — A low-cost exercise program run by Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City has significantly improved pain, function and quality of life in participants with osteoarthritis, according to new research.

The study adds to the growing evidence that exercise is beneficial for osteoarthritis and shows that a hospital-based program can work. The study will be reported at the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology/Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals (ACR/ARHP), to be held Nov. 9-14, in Washington D.C.

The new study showed that the weekly exercise programs significantly improved enjoyment of life and balance, and decreased pain and the severity and frequency of falls. "When participants were asked to report their level of pain severity, there were statistically significant reductions in pain from pre- to post-test. Pain is a huge factor in quality of life," said Sandra Goldsmith, director of the Public and Patient Education Department at Hospital for Special Surgery. "If we can offer classes that help to reduce pain, that is a good thing."

Roughly ten years ago, HSS launched its Osteoarthritis Wellness Initiative, which has grown to encompass both an educational component, including lectures and workshops, as well as exercise classes. In the study to be presented at the recent ACR/ARHP meeting, Special Surgery researchers evaluated the effectiveness of the exercise programs on 200 participants.

The classes, which met weekly throughout the year, included Tai Chi, yoga, mat and chair pilates, yoga-lates and dance fitness. Instructors who could tailor exercises for those with osteoarthritis and other musculoskeletal issues supervised the exercise programs. The researchers analyzed results from surveys that were administered before and after the exercise programs. The surveys included measures of self-reported pain, balance, falls and level of physical activity. An 11-point numeric pain intensity scale was used to quantify intensity of muscle or joint pain. The 10-point Brief Pain Inventory was used to measure pain interference on aspects of quality of life, including general activity, mood, walking ability, sleep, normal work (both outside the home and housework), and enjoyment of life.

In the sample of 200 participants, roughly 53% indicated that they experienced pain relief as a result of participating in the exercise programs. In fact, when researchers analyzed the subset of 66 participants who completed both pre and post surveys, a larger proportion, 62%, indicated they experienced pain relief after participating in the exercise programs. The level of pain intensity that participants experienced also significantly dropped from 4.5 to 2.7 in this group, where 0 was no pain and 10 was the worst pain imaginable. When researchers compared participants' estimation of how much pain interfered with various aspects of an individual's life, they identified a 54% improvement in general activity, mood, walking ability, sleep, normal work, and enjoyment of life.

"We asked participants to rate their balance, and we found a statistically significant increase in those who rated their balance as excellent, very good or good, from pre- to post-intervention, " said Dana Friedman, MPH, outcomes manager in the HSS Public and Patient Education Department. Fewer respondents reported falling from pre- to post-test (14.5% vs. 13.1%), as well as sustaining injuries that required hospitalization (12.1% vs. 10.6%).

Linda Russell, M.D., a rheumatologist at HSS who is chair of the Public and Patient Education Advisory Committee, points out that the classes are low cost for patients and the fees cover the majority of costs associated with offering these types of programs, including salaries for the instructors. "We like to get all of our patients involved in exercise, and if we can help with a low-cost alternative to exercising in New York City, because gyms are expensive, then it is wonderful," said Dr. Russell. "Patients benefit from supervised exercise programs with regard to their overall sense of well-being and pain due to their arthritis. We encourage other institutions to launch these types of program."

"We'd like to be a role model for other hospitals, showing them that offering this type of program can help their patients reduce pain and improve quality of life," said Ms. Goldsmith. "We are willing to discuss the details about how to start these programs."

All exercise programs were run through the HSS Public and Patient Education Department, which includes the Greenberg Academy for Successful Aging, a collaborative program between the HSS Public and Patient Education Department and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital's Irving Sherwood Wright Center for the Aging.

Osteoarthritis is the leading cause of disability in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 50 million U.S. adults, 22% of the population, suffered from osteoarthritis in 2009, compared with 46 million in 2003-2005. Arthritis affected the daily activities of 21 million adults in 2009. Body mass index influences the prevalence of arthritis; 29.6% of obese adults have arthritis.

Other Hospital for Special Surgery authors involved in the study include Linda Roberts, LCSW, Dana Sperber and Laura Robbins, DSW.

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Hospital for Special Surgery, via Newswise.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

View the original article here

Medical schools fall short on teaching students about obesity, study finds

Oct. 31, 2012 — It’s no secret that obesity is a major problem in America. More than one-third of adults and one-sixth of children are obese and it is one of the leading causes of preventable death. The costs associated with obesity are estimated at $99 million annually, comparable to the economic toll of cigarette smoking.

Despite all this, few U.S. medical schools are providing adequate, effective training on how to address weight issues in obese patients, according to researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

“Medical students are surrounded by the same environment that everyone is in this country, a culture of idealized images of physical attractiveness in which thin is good and fat is bad,” said Mara Vitolins, Dr.P.H., R.D., professor of public health sciences at Wake Forest Baptist and lead author of the study that was published in the July issue of the journal Teaching and Learning in Medicine. “We just aren’t doing a good enough job of teaching our students evidence-based methods of intervention and care for our obese patients.”

The purpose of the study was to provide a systematic review of the literature examining obesity-related educational programs. In an effort to gauge the amount and effectiveness of medical school training related to obesity, the researchers reviewed literature from the National Institutes of Health’s PubMed database from 1966 through 2010.

Of the 208 articles found, only five addressed ways to increase medical students’ knowledge, attitudes and skills regarding overweight and obesity treatment. Only two of those five addressed medical student bias toward obese patients, and just one dealt with attempting to change this bias.

The lack of published studies in this area is consistent with physicians’ reports of inadequate training in managing their patients’ weight, the researchers reported.
“Our study shows clear gaps in medical education regarding obesity,” Vitolins said. “Providing medical students with skills to address obesity is necessary to impact the national epidemic of obesity to decrease mortality and morbidity from chronic diseases related to excess weight.

“Our findings also highlight the need for medical school curricula to mitigate negative attitudes toward these patients, attitudes that may affect the care delivered.”

In addition, the researchers did not find any study that included obesity education over all four years of medical school, including the basic science and clinical years. Although some medical schools require their students to teach prevention, including nutrition and weight management in community clinics, this approach still doesn’t cover the full range of obesity counseling knowledge available.

“Utilizing multiple types of intervention approaches – lectures, standardized patient encounters and hands-on training – during multiple time points in the medical school curriculum is needed,” Vitolins added. “Such training should be based on tried and true educational approaches and include education in bias and stereotyping, as well as specifically addressing obesity bias.”

To help address the lack of obesity-related education in medical schools, the Wake Forest Baptist team has recently published a downloadable teaching and learning program for nutrition, exercise and weight management in MedEdPortal. According to Vitolins, the research team was committed to sharing their educational modules with others to improve nationwide efforts to reduce obesity.

Co-authors of the study are Sonia Crandall, Ph.D., David Miller, M.D., Eddie Ip, Ph.D., Gail Marion, Ph.D., and John Spangler, M.D., of Wake Forest Baptist.
The study was supported by the National Cancer Institute grant R25CA117887-01.

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

Journal Reference:

Mara Z. Vitolins, Sonia Crandall, David Miller, Eddie Ip, Gail Marion, John G. Spangler. Obesity Educational Interventions in U.S. Medical Schools: A Systematic Review and Identified Gaps. Teaching and Learning in Medicine, 2012; 24 (3): 267 DOI: 10.1080/10401334.2012.692286

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

View the original article here