“‘How much should I exercise?’ is a common question. What is the bare minimum that must be done to see progress?’ “As a PhD student in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, Sarah Aghjayan, who is the study’s lead author, explained. “Exercise three times a week for at least four months to reap the benefits of episodic memory, according to our research.

Memory that deals with past events is known as episodic memory. It’s also one of the first things to decline as we get older. A common topic of conversation for Aghjayan is his first experience behind the wheel. “As a result, you may recall the time and place, as well as your age and the identity of the person sitting next to you in the passenger seat who was explaining things to you.

Exercising with a high heart rate has shown promise in improving brain health and memory in mice, but human studies investigating the same link have produced mixed results.

After sifting through 1,279 studies, a team of researchers narrowed their search to 36 studies that met specific criteria. In order to make comparisons between the various studies possible, they used specialized software and a large number of Excel spreadsheets.

They were rewarded for their efforts when they discovered that combining the results of 36 separate studies showed that regular exercise can improve memory in older adults. Researchers from Pitt, Carnegie Mellon University, and the University of Iowa, as well as Aghjayan’s advisor Kirk Erickson from the Department of Psychology, published their findings in the journal Communications Medicine on February 17.

Aghjayan and her team took several extra steps to give themselves the best chance of finding a link if one did exist between exercise and memory in previous analyses. For their research, they narrowed their focus to a specific group and age range, as well as a specific experimental setup. Focusing on episodic memory, which is supported by a part of the brain known to benefit from exercise, was another key.

To examine nearly 3,000 participants, Aghjayan said, “When we combine and merge all this data, it allows us to examine almost 3,000 participants,” In the words of the late Stephen Hawking, “Each individual study is very important: They all contribute to science in a meaningful way.” Because of the lack of resources to conduct large-scale experiments, individual studies may not be able to find patterns that are actually present. Individual studies failed to discover a link between physical activity and improved memory; it took a comprehensive review of the available evidence to identify the pattern.

Extensive research has shown that physical activity can improve episodic memory, but the study’s findings have also helped researchers identify who benefits and how.

Aghjayan said that those between the ages of 55 and 68 showed the greatest improvement in memory, compared to those between the ages of 69 and 85. “We found that there were greater improvements in memory among those who are age 55 to 68 years compared to those who are 69 to 85 years old — so intervening earlier is better,” he said. People who had not yet experienced cognitive decline and those who exercised regularly several times a week were found to benefit the most from exercise, according to the research team.

There are still a lot of unanswered questions. It’s still unclear how exercise intensity affects memory benefits, and more research is needed to figure this out. In terms of public health, the ramifications are crystal clear: Aghjayan argues that physical activity is a cost-effective way for seniors to maintain their cognitive function and prevent memory loss while also benefiting family caregivers and the healthcare system as a whole.

“As long as you have a good pair of walking shoes, you’re ready to go.

“‘How much should I exercise?’ is a common question. What is the bare minimum that must be done to see progress?’ “As a PhD student in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, Sarah Aghjayan, who is the study’s lead author, explained. “Exercise three times a week for at least four months to reap the benefits of episodic memory, according to our research.

Memory that deals with past events is known as episodic memory. It’s also one of the first things to decline as we get older. A common topic of conversation for Aghjayan is his first experience behind the wheel. “As a result, you may recall the time and place, as well as your age and the identity of the person sitting next to you in the passenger seat who was explaining things to you.

Exercising with a high heart rate has shown promise in improving brain health and memory in mice, but human studies investigating the same link have produced mixed results.

After sifting through 1,279 studies, a team of researchers narrowed their search to 36 studies that met specific criteria. In order to make comparisons between the various studies possible, they used specialized software and a large number of Excel spreadsheets.

They were rewarded for their efforts when they discovered that combining the results of 36 separate studies showed that regular exercise can improve memory in older adults. Researchers from Pitt, Carnegie Mellon University, and the University of Iowa, as well as Aghjayan’s advisor Kirk Erickson from the Department of Psychology, published their findings in the journal Communications Medicine on February 17.

Aghjayan and her team took several extra steps to give themselves the best chance of finding a link if one did exist between exercise and memory in previous analyses. For their research, they narrowed their focus to a specific group and age range, as well as a specific experimental setup. Focusing on episodic memory, which is supported by a part of the brain known to benefit from exercise, was another key.

To examine nearly 3,000 participants, Aghjayan said, “When we combine and merge all this data, it allows us to examine almost 3,000 participants,” In the words of the late Stephen Hawking, “Each individual study is very important: They all contribute to science in a meaningful way.” Because of the lack of resources to conduct large-scale experiments, individual studies may not be able to find patterns that are actually present. Individual studies failed to discover a link between physical activity and improved memory; it took a comprehensive review of the available evidence to identify the pattern.

Extensive research has shown that physical activity can improve episodic memory, but the study’s findings have also helped researchers identify who benefits and how.

Aghjayan said that those between the ages of 55 and 68 showed the greatest improvement in memory, compared to those between the ages of 69 and 85. “We found that there were greater improvements in memory among those who are age 55 to 68 years compared to those who are 69 to 85 years old — so intervening earlier is better,” he said. People who had not yet experienced cognitive decline and those who exercised regularly several times a week were found to benefit the most from exercise, according to the research team.

There are still a lot of unanswered questions. It’s still unclear how exercise intensity affects memory benefits, and more research is needed to figure this out. In terms of public health, the ramifications are crystal clear: Aghjayan argues that physical activity is a cost-effective way for seniors to maintain their cognitive function and prevent memory loss while also benefiting family caregivers and the healthcare system as a whole.

“As long as you have a good pair of walking shoes, you’re ready to go.