Date of Award

6-2011

Document Type

Open Access

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science

Department

Neuroscience

First Advisor

Cay Anderson-Hanley

Language

English

Keywords

geriatrics, senior citizens, dementia, cognition

Abstract

With the growing aging population, it’s becoming increasingly important to find ways to either deter or prevent dementia. To date, most research has concentrated on the effects of aerobic exercise on cognition. Unfortunately, a large portion of older adults are often contraindicated to perform aerobic exercise due to different risk factors, which increase with age. Alas, alternate ways of exercise are necessary. Low-intensity strengthening exercise is a type of exercise aimed at improving balance and strengthening muscles without requiring one to overstrain. The current 11-week long exercise study test neuropsychological effects of exercise with a neuropsychological battery and neurophysiological effects of exercise with an electroencephalogram (EEG). We find that 11 weeks of low-intensity strengthening exercise significantly improves verbal and visual-spatial memory (as measured by the Fuld task and the Complex Figure task) and significantly increases N200 amplitude hemispherical asymmetry in the frontal lobe.

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