Aerobic Fitness and Neurocognitive Function in Healthy Preadolescent Children (original) (raw)
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The relationship between aerobic fitness and executive control was assessed in 38 higher-and lower-fit children (M age ϭ 9.4 years), grouped according to their performance on a field test of aerobic capacity. Participants performed a flanker task requiring variable amounts of executive control while event-related brain potential responses and task performance were assessed. Results indicated that higher-fit children performed more accurately across conditions of the flanker task and following commission errors when compared to lower-fit children, whereas no group differences were observed for reaction time. Neuroelectric data indicated that P3 amplitude was larger for higher-compared to lower-fit children across conditions of the flanker task, and higher-fit children exhibited reduced error-related negativity amplitude and increased error positivity amplitude compared to lower-fit children. The data suggest that fitness is associated with better cognitive performance on an executive control task through increased cognitive control, resulting in greater allocation of attentional resources during stimulus encoding and a subsequent reduction in conflict during response selection. The findings differ from those observed in adult populations by indicating a general rather than a selective relationship between aerobic fitness and cognition.
Aerobic fitness and intra-individual variability of neurocognition in preadolescent children
This study examined behavioral and neuroelectric intra-individual variability (IIV) in preadolescent children during a task requiring variable amounts of cognitive control. The current study further examined whether IIV was moderated by aerobic fitness level. Participants performed a modified flanker task, comprised of congruent and incongruent arrays, within compatible and incompatible stimulus–response conditions. Results revealed that congruent, relative to incongruent, conditions were associated with less IIV of RT. Further, less IIV of RT, P3 amplitude, and P3 latency was observed for the compatible relative to the incompatible condition. Higher fitness was associated with shorter and less variable RT only for the incompatible condition, with no fitness-related differences observed for P3 variability. The findings suggest that conditions requiring greater cognitive control are associated with increased IIV, and that higher fitness may be associated with greater integrity of cognitive control systems during development.
Childhood aerobic fitness predicts cognitive performance one year later
Journal of Sports Sciences, 2012
Aerobically fit children outperform less fit peers on cognitive control challenges that involve inhibition, cognitive flexibility, and working memory. The aim of this study was to determine whether, compared with less fit children, more fit 9-and 10year-old pre-adolescents exhibit superior performance on a modified compatible and incompatible flanker task of cognitive control at the initial time of fitness testing and approximately one year later. We found that more fit children demonstrated increased flanker accuracy at both test sessions, coupled with a superior ability to flexibly allocate strategies during task conditions that required different amounts of cognitive control, relative to less fit children. More fit children also gained a speed benefit at follow-up testing. Structural MRI data were also collected to investigate the relationship between basal ganglia volume and task performance. Bilateral putamen volumes of the dorsal striatum and globus pallidus volumes predicted flanker performance at initial and follow-up testing one year later. The present findings suggest that childhood aerobic fitness and basal ganglia volumes relate to cognitive control at the time of fitness testing and may play a role in cognitive performance in the future. We hope that this research will encourage public health and educational changes that will promote a physically active lifestyle in children.
Association between physical fitness and cognitive performance in 19-24 year old males
Biology of Sport, 2018
The present study aimed to explore the association between physical fitness (PF) and cognitive performance in a sample of 19-24 year old males. Two hundred and eleven young males (20.2±1.5 years) participated in the study. Cognitive functioning tasks including information processing speed and inhibitory control were measured in addition to PF and motor fitness components such as aerobic fitness, static strength, explosive strength, agility and speed. Regression analysis showed that after adjustment for potential confounders (e.g. age, socioeconomic status, adiposity and physical activity), aerobic fitness (represented by shorter time in the one-mile run) was positively associated with composite inhibitory control scores (standardized β=0.17; p=0.04) and negatively associated with ∆ Simon (standardized β=-0.21; p=0.04). Explosive strength was negatively associated with composite information processing scores (standardized β=-0.24; P=0.01), and composite inhibitory control scores (standardized β=-0.22; p=0.02). Speed of movement, agility and static strength were not associated with any of the cognitive tests. In conclusion, aerobic fitness and explosive strength but not speed, agility or static strength might be indicators of underlying cognitive functioning tasks in 19-24 year old males.
Association between physical and motor fitness with cognitive performance in youths
Biology of Sport, 2018
Objectives The present study aimed to explore the association between physical fitness (PF) with cognitive performance in a sample of 19-24 year old males. Material and methods Two hundred and eleven young males (20.2 ±1.5 y) participated in the study. Cognitive functioning tasks including information processing speed and inhibitory control were measured in addition to PF and motor fitness components such as aerobic fitness, static strength, explosive strength, agility and speed. Results Regression analysis showed that after adjustment for potential confounders (e.g. age, socioeconomic status, adiposity and physical activity), aerobic fitness (represented by shorter time in one-mile run) was positively associated with composite inhibitory control scores (Standardized β= 0.17; P=0.04) and negatively associated with ∆ Simon (Standardized β=-0.21; P=0.04). Explosive strength was negatively associated with composite information processing scores (Standardized β=-0.24; P=0.01), and composite inhibitory control scores (Standardized β=-0.22; P=0.02). Speed of movement, agility and static strength were not associated with any of the cognitive tests. Conclusions In conclusion, aerobic fitness and explosive strength but not speed, agility and static strength might be indicators of underlying cognitive functioning tasks in 19-24 year old males.
Associations Between Aerobic Fitness and Cognitive Control in Adolescents
Frontiers in psychology, 2018
Previous research has found positive associations between cognitive control and aerobic fitness in preadolescents and adults; however, fewer studies have investigated these associations in adolescents. Adolescence is of particular interest due to continued maturation of the prefrontal cortex; an area that subserves cognitive control. This study investigated the associations of aerobic fitness and cognitive control in adolescents. An assessment of aerobic fitness (Andersen intermittent running test) and two tests of cognitive control were collected to investigate these associations. Participants completed a test of inhibitory control (flanker task) and a test of cognitive flexibility (switch task). Along with traditional measures of reaction time (RT) and accuracy, diffusion modeling was utilized to combine these measures to calculate latent variables (i.e., drift rate, boundary separation, and nondecision time). Associations between cognitive measures and fitness were assessed with ...
Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 2014
In this chapter, we review literature that examines the association among physical activity, aerobic fitness, cognition, and the brain in elementary school children (ages 7-10 years). Specifically, physical activity and higher levels of aerobic fitness in children have been found to benefit brain structure, brain function, cognition, and school achievement. For example, higher fit children have larger brain volumes in the basal ganglia and hippocampus, which relate to superior performance on tasks of cognitive control and memory, respectively, when compared to their lower fit peers. Higher fit children also show superior brain function during tasks of cognitive control, better scores on tests of academic achievement, and higher performance on a real-world street crossing task, compared to lower fit and less active children. The cross-sectional findings are strengthened by a few randomized, controlled trials, which demonstrate that children randomly assigned to a physical activity in...
The relation of aerobic fitness to neuroelectric indices of cognitive and motor task preparation
The relation of aerobic fitness to task preparation was examined in a sample of young adults separated into higher-and lower-fit groups according to their maximal oxygen consumption. Participants performed a modified Sternberg working memory task under speed and accuracy instructions while measures of task performance and contingent negative variation (CNV) were collected. Analyses revealed no significant fitness differences between groups on task performance measures. However, frontal CNV amplitude was significantly larger for lower-fit participants compared to higher-fit participants during the speed instructions, an effect not found for the accuracy instructions. These results suggest that lower-fit individuals may rely to a greater extent on cognitive control processes to respond under speeded conditions, whereas higher-fit individuals may maintain a more constant level of control irrespective of the task instructions.