Featured ArticleIndependent and combined effects of cognitive and physical activity on incident MCI

IntroductionThe objective of this study was to examine the independent and combined influences of late-life cognitive activity (CA) and physical activity (PA) on the risk of incident mild cognitive impairment (MCI).MethodsWe used interval censored survival modeling to examine the risk of incident MCI (Clinical Dementia Rating [CDR] = 0.5) as a function of CA (high vs. low) and at least moderate intensity PA (any vs. none) among 864 cognitively normal (CDR = 0) older adults.ResultsDuring three annual follow-up waves, 72 participants developed MCI. Compared with low CA with no PA, significant reductions in risk for MCI were observed for high CA with any PA (hazards ratio (HR) = 0.20, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.07-0.52) and low CA with any PA (HR = 0.52, 95% CI 0.29-0.93), but not for high CA without PA (HR = 0.94, 95% CI 0.45-1.95).DiscussionThese findings suggest that a combination of CA and PA may be most efficacious at reducing the risk for cognitive impairment.