| Title: | Leisure Activities and Their Relationship With MRI Measures of Brain Structure, Functional Connectivity, and Cognition in the UK Biobank Cohort |
| Journal: | Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience |
| Published: | 16 Nov 2021 |
| Pubmed: | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34867271/ |
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2021.734866 |
| URL: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2021.734866/pdf |
Publication 10594
WARNING: the interactive features of this website use CSS3, which your browser does not support. To use the full features of this website, please update your browser.
Abstract
Introduction: This study aimed to evaluate whether engagement in leisure activities is linked to measures of brain structure, functional connectivity, and cognition in early old age. Methods: We examined data collected from 7,152 participants of the United Kingdom Biobank (UK Biobank) study. Weekly participation in six leisure activities was assessed twice and a cognitive battery and 3T MRI brain scan were administered at the second visit. Based on responses collected at two time points, individuals were split into one of four trajectory groups: (1) stable low engagement, (2) stable weekly engagement, (3) low to weekly engagement, and (4) weekly to low engagement. Results: Consistent weekly attendance at a sports club or gym was associated with connectivity of the sensorimotor functional network with the lateral visual (β = 0.12, 95%CI = [0.07, 0.18], FDR q = 2.48 × 10-3) and cerebellar (β = 0.12, 95%CI = [0.07, 0.18], FDR q = 1.23 × 10-4) networks. Visiting friends and family across the two timepoints was also associated with larger volumes of the occipital lobe (β = 0.15, 95%CI = [0.08, 0.21], FDR q = 0.03). Additionally, stable and weekly computer use was associated with global cognition (β = 0.62, 95%CI = [0.35, 0.89], FDR q = 1.16 × 10-4). No other associations were significant (FDR q > 0.05). Discussion: This study demonstrates that not all leisure activities contribute to cognitive health equally, nor is there one unifying neural signature across diverse leisure activities.</p>
5 Authors
- Melis Anatürk
- Sana Suri
- Stephen M. Smith
- Klaus P. Ebmeier
- Claire E. Sexton
Enabling scientific discoveries that improve human health