Mediation effects of cognitive, physical, and motivational reserves on cognitive performance in older people

Abstract

IntroductionWe study from a multidimensional perspective the different factors that help prevent the development of cognitive impairment in old aging.MethodsThis study analyzed in 300 elderly subjects the relationship between cognitive reserve (CR), physical reserve (PR) and motivational reserve (MR) with cognitive impairment. This study also takes into consideration different variables (sex, age, educational level, and institutionalization) that might affect the results in the different types of reserves (CR, physical and MR) and cognitive impairment.ResultsThe results show that people with a higher cognitive reserve, physical reserve and motivational reserve have less cognitive impairment.DiscussionTherefore, it is important to consider measuring the CR as a variable to diagnose neurodegenerative illnesses but it is also essential to consider the physical state and physical activity, as well as the motivational dimension. With the cognitive reserve and sex variables no significant differences were observed. Age had a negative effect on strategic flexibility, but those with higher CR had better cognitive flexibility and the educational.

Cognitive Reserve, Physical Reserve, and Cognitive Efficiency of Older People Living in the Sardinian Blue Zone. An Exploratory Study

“…Indeed, it has been shown that the number of daily steps and the CR total measure explained approximately 18% of the variance in the MMSE condition, as well as 32% of the variance in the MMSE condition was explained by time spent on leisure activities and daily steps. Altogether, these findings extend those of previous studies that highlighted the predictive role of CR on physical reserve (Martinčević & Vranić, 2023) and of CR and physical reserve on healthy cognition in late adulthood (Sanchez Cabaco et al, 2023). Specifically, the significant indirect effect of CR—especially the CRIq-Hobby measure—and daily steps on the MMSE score suggests that the cognitive reserve and physical one contribute in preserving the global cognitive functioning of older individuals who age well.…”

“…Extending the above-mentioned outcomes, Cabaco et al, (2023) recently revealed that both self-assessed physical reserve and CR mediate the effect of age and educational attainment on memory efficiency and global cognition of 55-99-year-old individuals. In addition, Martinčević and Vranić (2023) found that a proxy of CR, namely, time spent for leisure activities, contributed to predicting self-reported physical activity in late adulthood.…”

“…Moreover, physical activity (PA)—that has been defined by the World Health Organization “as any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that requires energy expenditure” to perform mobility, leisure activities, or work (WHO, 2022)—is a protective factor indicative of physical reserve (Sanchez Cabaco et al, 2023) for cognitively healthy aging. In this regard, the large body of literature which explored the effects of PA on cognition in older adults through behavioral and neuroimaging measures has demonstrated its beneficial effects in terms of enhancement and/or maintenance of cognitive functioning into advancing age (Etnier et al, 2019).…”

“…Keeping in mind the exploratory nature of this study, following previous studies significant associations were hypothesized between global cognitive functioning and CR (e.g., Kim et al, 2021; Litkouhi et al, 2023), between CR as a measure of past work occupation and executive functions (Calatayud et al, 2022), and between the former and physical reserve (e.g., Bherer et al, 2013; Calatayud et al, 2022). Moreover, CR assessed in terms of time spent on leisure activities was expected to predict physical reserve (Martinčević & Vranić, 2023), and both CR and physical reserve were expected to predict the cognition of older participants (Sanchez Cabaco et al, 2023). Finally, due to the lack of previous evidence, no a priori hypotheses were proposed concerning the indirect effect of CR and objectively assessed physical reserve on the global cognitive functioning measure of successful older individuals of the Sardinian BZ.…”

Changes in EEG Activity and Cognition Related to Physical Activity in Older Adults: A Systematic Review

“…Additionally, in older adults, PA has been shown to reduce social isolation and improve quality of life [13,14] and cognitive function; it is also associated with positive changes in brain electrical activity [9]. Furthermore, studies have shown that older adults with higher cognitive, physical, and motivational reserves have less cognitive decline [15], and that there is a relationship between PA and cognition [16][17][18].…”