Here's how engaging in household chores may improve brain health

Chores done can be beneficial for brain health in older adults, according to a new study. The study found that older adults who spent more time doing household chores had larger brain sizes, which is a powerful predictor of cognitive health. The results of the study were published in the journal BMC Geriatrics.

"Scientists already know that exercise has a positive effect on the brain, but our study is the first to show that housework can do the same," said Noah Koblinsky, lead author, exercise physiologist and project coordinator at Baycrest's Rotman Research Institute (RRI).

Koblinsky added, "Understanding how different forms of physical activity contribute to brain health is critical to developing strategies to reduce the risk of cognitive decline and dementia in older adults."

In this study, researchers examined the relationships between household chores, brain volume, and cognition in a group of 66 cognitively healthy older adults living in the community. Participants took part in three assessment visits to Baycrest Hospital, including a health assessment, structural brain imaging, and cognitive assessment.

Participants were asked about the time spent doing household chores such as tidying up, dusting, preparing and cleaning up meals, shopping, heavy housework, gardening, home repairs, and grooming.

The researchers found that older adults who spent more time doing such activities had greater brain volume regardless of how much exercise they did. This has been observed in the hippocampus, which plays an important role in memory and learning, and the frontal lobe, which is involved in many aspects of cognition.

While it is possible that individuals with larger brains could be more likely to do chores, there could be several explanations for the brain benefits of doing household chores.

First, we know that heart health is closely related to brain health. Chores might have an effect on the heart and blood vessels similar to that of low-intensity aerobic exercise.

Second, planning and organizing household chores can encourage new neural connections to form over time, even as we get older.

Third, older adults who did more household chores could have spent less time settling down, which has been shown to be linked to negative health outcomes, including poor brain health.

"These results not only help provide recommendations for physical activity for older adults, but also motivate them to be more active, as household chores are a natural and often necessary aspect of many people's daily lives and therefore seem easier to achieve," said Dr. Nicole Anderson, Senior Scientist at RRI, Director of Ben and Hilda Katz's Interprofessional Research Program in Elderly Care and Dementia Care, and Senior Author of this study.

This study was funded in part by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR).

As a next step, the researchers want to assess physical activity in the household more objectively using wearable technology. With additional funding, they could also schedule controlled studies to increase individual household activity and examine changes in the brain over time.

This story was published by a wire agency feed with no changes to the text. Only the heading was changed.
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