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Objective: To investigate the independent and joint associations between sedentary behaviors (SB) and physical activity (PA) with inhibitory control (IC) in adults., Methods: A total of 111 participants (median age = 30 years; 60% women), completed the Stroop Color-Words test to assess IC. They also wore accelerometers for seven days to measure SB, light PA, moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA), and daily steps. We previously set cutoff points for SB and PA measurements and tested them to determine their association with IC. All analyses were adjusted for potential confounding factors including age, gender, post-secondary education, income, body mass index, and accelerometer wear time., Results: Low SB, high MVPA, and high daily steps were independently associated with a better IC compared to their respective counterparts. Adults with low levels of SB and light PA demonstrated better IC performance (β = -227.67, 95%CI = -434.14 to -21.20) compared to those with high SB and low light PA. Conversely, individuals with high SB and high light PA exhibited worse performance (β = 126.80, 95%CI = 2.11 to 251.50) than those in the high SB and low light PA group. Furthermore, the joint association of low SB with high MVPA (β = -491.12, 95%CI = -689.23 to -293.01) or low SB with high daily steps (β = -254.29, 95%CI = -416.41 to -92.16) demonstrated better IC performance compared to those with high SB and low MVPA or low daily steps., Conclusion: Our findings highlight independent and joint associations between low SB, high MVPA, and high daily steps with enhanced IC in adults., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Physical inactivity has been suggested to impair physical performance, cognitive functions and facilitate weight gain. One hypothesis is that long periods of physical inactivity could impair oxygen delivery to the prefrontal cortex (PFC), impairing one's cognitive ability to inhibit unhealthy automated behaviors and, therefore, reduce exercise tolerance. The present study sought to further understand the relationship among PFC hemodynamics, inhibitory control, and exercise tolerance in individuals with low physical fitness levels who are overweight or obese. Thirty-four participants were asked to perform a series of inhibitory control tests (i.e., Stroop task) in one testing session and complete an incremental cycling exercise test with hemodynamic fluctuations of the PFC measured with functional near-infrared spectroscopy in another session. Our results indicate that exercise performance varied with PFC oxygenation. We also found that inhibitory control played a key role mediating the relationship between PFC oxygenation and exercise performance, suggesting that the cognitive ability to inhibit automated responses has an impact on exercise behavior in adults with overweight and obesity., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest None., (Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Heart Failure is a clinical syndrome prevalent throughout the world and a major contribution to mortality of cardiac patients in Brazil. In addition, this pathology is strongly related to cerebral dysfunction, with a high prevalence of cognitive impairment. Many mechanisms may be related to cognitive loss, such as cerebral hypoperfusion, atrophy and loss of gray matter of the brain, and dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system. The literature is clear regarding the benefits of aerobic physical activity in healthy populations in the modulation of the autonomic nervous system and in brain functions. Studies have shown that in the population of patients with heart failure, exercise is associated with an improvement in cognitive function, as well as in cardiac autonomic regulation. However, little emphasis has been given to the mechanisms by which aerobic physical activity can benefit brain functioning, the autonomic nervous system and result in better cognitive performance, particularly in patients with heart failure. Therefore, the present work presents the ways in which brain areas responsible for cognition also act in the modulation of the autonomic nervous system, and emphasizes its importance for the understanding of cognitive impairment in relation to the pathophysiology of heart failure. It is also described the way in which aerobic physical activity can promote benefits when it is integrated into the therapy, associated to a better prognosis of the clinical picture of these patients.

Background: Individuals with Substance Use Disorder (SUD) have lower baseline metabolic activity of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) associated with impairment of cognitive functions in decision-making and inhibitory control. Aerobic exercise has shown to improve PFC function and cognitive performance, however, its effects on SUD individuals remain unclear., Purpose: To verify the cognitive performance and oxygenation of the PFC during an incremental exercise in SUD individuals., Methods: Fourteen individuals under SUD treatment performed a maximum graded exercise test on a cycle ergometer with continuous measurements of oxygen consumption, PFC oxygenation, and inhibitory control (Stroop test) every two minutes of exercise at different intensities. Fifteen non-SUD individuals performed the same protocol and were used as control group., Results: Exercise increased oxyhemoglobin (O2Hb) and total hemoglobin (tHb) by 9% and 7%, respectively. However, when compared to a non-SUD group, this increase was lower at high intensities (p<0.001), and the inhibitory cognitive control was lower at rest and during exercise (p<0.007). In addition, PFC hemodynamics during exercise was inversely correlated with inhibitory cognitive performance (reaction time) (r = -0.62, p = 0.001), and a lower craving perception for the specific abused substance (p = 0.0189) was reported immediately after exercise., Conclusion: Despite SUD individuals having their PFC cerebral oxygenation increased during exercise, they presented lower cognition and oxygenation when compared to controls, especially at elevated intensities. These results may reinforce the role of exercise as an adjuvant treatment to improve PFC function and cognitive control in individuals with SUD.

Drug addiction is a worldwide public health problem, resulting from multiple phenomena, including those both social and biological. Chronic use of psychoactive substances has been shown to induce structural and functional changes in the brain that impair cognitive control and favor compulsive seeking behavior. Physical exercise has been proven to improve brain function and cognition in both healthy and clinical populations. While some studies have demonstrated the potential benefits of physical exercise in treating and preventing addictive behaviors, few studies have investigated its cognitive and neurobiological contributions to drug-addicted brains. Here, we review studies in humans using cognitive behavioral responses and neuroimaging techniques, which reveal that exercise can be an effective auxiliary treatment for drug addictive disorders. Moreover, we describe the neurobiological mechanisms by which exercise-induced neuroplasticity in the prefrontal cortex improves executive functions and may decrease compulsive behaviors in individuals prone to substance use disorders. Finally, we propose an integrative cognitive-psychobiological model of exercise for use in future research in drug addiction and practical guidance in clinical settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractBackgroundMethodsResultsConclusionsThis meta-review aimed to synthesize the evidence of the effects of exercise on anxiety and depression symptoms amongst adults with cancer, and cancer-survivors, comparing effects sizes between meta-analysis.Major databases were searched up to February 9, 2024 for meta-analyses evaluating the effects of exercise, using anxiety and/or depression scales. Effect size (ES) values were calculated as standardized differences in the means and expressed as the Standardized Mean Difference (SMD) with the 95% confidence interval (95%CI). A total of eight unique meta-analyses were included.Among meta-analyses examining both anxiety and depression symptoms overall, a small beneficial effect of exercise was shown [SMD = 0.41 (0.25–0.57); p < 0.0001]. Subgroup analyses revealed that exercise has a small effect on decreasing anxiety [SMD = 0.42 (0.04–0.79); p = 0.027], and depressive symptoms [SMD = 0.38 (0.21–0.56); p < 0.0001]. In addition, aerobic exercise has a moderate effect on reducing depressive symptoms [SMD = 0.54 (0.16–0.93); p = 0.005], whereas resistance exercise has no effect. Subgroup analyses by type of cancer observed a moderate effect on decreasing depressive symptoms in patients with breast cancer [SMD = 0.51 (0.27–0.74); p < 0.0001].Exercise (specifically aerobic) should be considered by healthcare professionals as a strategy to treat/manage symptoms of anxiety and depression amongst adults with cancer and cancer-survivors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While drug use has been shown to impair cardiac autonomic regulation, exercise might overcome some of the damage. Herein, we describe how individuals with substance use disorder (SUD) have their heart rate variability (HRV) and drug-related behaviors negatively affected in response to a stressor. However, we show how cardiorespiratory fitness may attenuate those impairments in autonomic control. Fifteen individuals with SUD were matched with 15 non-SUD individuals by age, weight, height, and fitness level, and had their HRV responses under stress induced by the Cold Pressor Test (CPT). The SUD group had lower mean of R-R intervals before and after the CPT when compared with the non-SUD group. In addition, in individuals with SUD, higher cardiorespiratory fitness level predicted greater vagal activity before, during, and after CPT. Moreover, for individuals with SUD, days of abstinence predicted greater mean of R-R intervals during recovery from the CPT. Finally, years of drug use negatively predicted mean of R-R intervals during recovery. Thus, our results suggest that chronic drug use impairs cardiac autonomic regulation at rest and after a physical stress. However, cardiorespiratory fitness might attenuate these impairments by increasing vagal autonomic activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]