Waking up closer to dawn and staying active throughout boosts mood and cognition

Getting up early and staying consistently active throughout the day can improve a person’s cognition and make them happier, a new study finds.

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) found that older adults who woke up before 7 a.m. depression.

Interestingly, the study found that exercise duration was more important for brain health than intensity. Participants who engaged in intensive exercise for half an hour to an hour every day saw little benefit compared to those who engaged in light activities such as walking for much of their waking hours.

While exercise has long been linked to better cognitive function, the study finds that exercising consistently and living to a more regular schedule may be the most important factor of all when it comes to maintaining cognitive health in life. old age.

The researchers, who published their findings Tuesday in JAMA Psychiatrygathered data from 1,800 people over the age of 65 for the study.

Each was equipped with an accelerometer, a device that could detect movement and exercise, for seven days to track their daily activity.

The participants also completed surveys about their daily mood and also recorded their wake-up time each morning.

They found that 37 percent of the participants got up early in the morning (at or before 7 a.m.) and remained relatively active throughout the day. This group also had consistent daily routines.

This group performed better on cognitive tests and was also the least likely to report depressive symptoms when surveyed.

‘Many older adults had strong patterns: they get up before 7am on average and keep going; they remain active for 15 hours or so each day. They also tend to follow the same pattern day after day,” Dr. Stephen Smagula, an assistant professor of psychiatry at UPMC, said in a statement.

“Lo and behold, those same adults were happier, less depressed and had better cognitive function than other participants.”

A third of the participants had consistent daily routines, but woke up later or went to bed earlier.

As a result, they did not score as well as the previous group on cognitive tests and reported a slightly higher risk of depression.

This is an interesting finding for the researchers, as it shows that more consistent activity throughout the day may be more valuable than intense exercise every day.

“People often think that the intensity of activity is important for health, but it might be the duration of activity that matters more,” Smagula explained.

“This is a different way of thinking about activity: You may not need to sprint or run a marathon, but just stay engaged in activities throughout the day.”

The worst off group was the remaining 30 percent who had inconsistent daily patterns and erratic physical activity throughout the day.

This group was the worst off, scoring low on cognitive tests and almost more likely to report depressive symptoms.

“Our findings suggest that activity pattern disruption is very common and associated with health problems in older adults,” Smagula continued.

“The relationship is likely to be two-way, so the good news is that we think simple changes, things that everyone can try, can restore regular activity patterns, and doing so can improve health.”

He said the most important factor in potentially reversing the effects that a bad routine or inconsistent schedule can have is developing a daily plan to stay active by doing fun activities.

“Most people are aware of the importance of getting a good night’s sleep and exercising, but I think what’s missing from this picture is the daily or circadian pattern of activity,” Smagula said.

“Having something to wake up to every morning and having a full day that you find useful and rewarding might be what’s important to us, getting a good night’s sleep and aging well.”