Fitness
Weekend exercise just as good for preventing dementia as daily workouts
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BOGOTÁ, Colombia — Are you too busy to exercise during the week? Scientists have good news: weekend workouts may be just as effective at protecting your brain health as regular exercise Monday through Friday.
The study, which tracked over 10,000 adults for 16 years, found that “weekend warriors” who exercised just once or twice per week had a 25% lower risk of developing mild dementia compared to those who didn’t exercise at all. This reduction in risk was similar to – and even slightly better than – the 11% lower risk seen in people who exercised three or more times per week.
This discovery could be particularly meaningful for busy working adults who struggle to find time for regular exercise. The research suggests that cramming your weekly physical activity into the weekend could still provide significant protection for your brain as you age.
“To the best of our knowledge, the present study is the first prospective cohort study to show that the weekend warrior physical activity pattern and the regularly active physical activity pattern are associated with similar reductions in the risk of mild dementia,” the study authors, led by Dr. Gary O’Donovan from the University of the Andes, in a media release.
The study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, is the first of its kind in Latin America to examine how exercise patterns affect dementia risk. While previous research has shown that physical activity can help prevent cognitive decline, most studies have been conducted in wealthy nations in Europe and North America.
The researchers followed 10,033 adults in Mexico City with an average age of 51. At the start of the study, participants were asked about their exercise habits and divided into three groups: those who didn’t exercise, “weekend warriors” who exercised once or twice weekly, and regularly active people who exercised three or more times weekly.
After 16 years, participants took a standard cognitive test called the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) to assess their mental function. The results showed that both weekend warriors and regular exercisers performed better on the cognitive tests compared to non-exercisers.
Perhaps most striking was the finding that if all middle-aged adults exercised at least once or twice per week, about 13% of mild dementia cases might be prevented. In Mexico alone, where dementia costs nearly $3.8 billion annually, this could translate to savings of about $378 million per year.
The findings are particularly relevant given that dementia cases are expected to surge from 57 million globally in 2019 to 153 million by 2050. In Latin America, the number of people living with dementia is predicted to triple by 2050.
Paper Summary
Methodology
The researchers recruited participants through door-to-door interviews in two districts of Mexico City. They collected detailed information about exercise habits, education, income, blood pressure, smoking, body mass index, sleep patterns, diet, and alcohol consumption. Sixteen years later, they assessed cognitive function using the Mini Mental State Examination, which tests various aspects of mental ability, including memory, attention, and language skills.
Key Results
The average cognitive test score was 24.5 for non-exercisers, compared to 25.8 for weekend warriors and 25.6 for regular exercisers. When defining mild dementia as a score of 22 or lower, 26% of non-exercisers met this criterion, compared to only 14% of weekend warriors and 18.5% of regular exercisers. These benefits were similar for both men and women.
Study Limitations
Exercise habits were self-reported rather than measured objectively with devices like fitness trackers. Additionally, the cognitive test used can screen for dementia but isn’t a clinical diagnosis. The study also couldn’t account for physical activity from daily tasks like walking for transportation, which is common in Latin American cities.
Discussion & Takeaways
The study suggests that exercise’s brain-protective effects might work through several mechanisms, including increasing brain-derived neurotrophic factor (a protein that supports brain cell growth) and improving brain plasticity. The findings are particularly relevant for cities like Mexico City, which closes 50 kilometers of roads to vehicles every Sunday for their “Ciclovía Recreativa” program, allowing around 80,000 people to walk, run, or cycle safely.
Funding & Disclosures
The study was approved by the Mexican Ministry of Health, the Mexican National Council of Science and Technology, and the Central Oxford Research Ethics Committee. The data came from the Mexico City Prospective Study, which makes its data available for open-access requests through Oxford University’s Clinical Trial Service Unit.