The effect of motor activity on improved memory and emotional well-being in elderly women

Résumé 0

"This study researches the effect of a wide range of different types of intervention (cognitive versus cognitive + motor versus non-intervention) on the memory and mental state of elderly women complaining of memory loss and leading a sedentary life. Subjects (N=102, 80% women, age M/SD = 76/5 years) were distributed randomly into the three treatmentgroups. The cognitive training consisted of attention exercises, language, association of ideas and problem solving while the motor training consisted of proprioceptive and dynamic exercises related to the body schema, balance and movement coordination. The duration of the treatment period was 8 months. The Rivermead Behavioural Memory Test(RBMT) and the Yesavage is Geriatric Scale of Depression (GDS) were applied before and after the treatment period.Results showed improvements associated with both interventions but deterioration in the control group. However, only the cognitive-motor group showed relevant improvement according to the above-mentioned tests.Results suggest that combined cognitive-motor intervention is more promising than the simply cognitive in improving memory function and the state of well-being in women who complained of subjective memory loss, and that both techniques are effective when compared with non-intervention."