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Relationships between Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviour and Cognitive Functions in Office Workers

Author

Listed:
  • Emil Bojsen-Møller

    (The Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences, GIH, 11486 Stockholm, Sweden)

  • Carl-Johan Boraxbekk

    (Danish Research Center for Magnetic Resonance, Center for Functional and Diagnostic Imaging and Research, Copenhagen University Hospital, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark
    Institute of Sports Medicine Copenhagen, Copenhagen University Hospital Bispebjerg, 2400 Copenhagen, Denmark
    Department of Radiation Sciences, Umeå University, 90187 Umeå, Sweden)

  • Örjan Ekblom

    (The Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences, GIH, 11486 Stockholm, Sweden)

  • Victoria Blom

    (The Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences, GIH, 11486 Stockholm, Sweden)

  • Maria M. Ekblom

    (The Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences, GIH, 11486 Stockholm, Sweden
    Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, 17177 Stockholm, Sweden)

Abstract

Increasing evidence from animal experiments suggests that physical activity (PA) promotes neuroplasticity and learning. For humans, most research on the relationship between PA, sedentary behaviour (SB), and cognitive function has relied on self-reported measures of behaviour. Office work is characterised by high durations of SB combined with high work demands. While previous studies have shown that fitter office workers outperform their less fit colleagues in cognitive tests, the importance of PA and SB remains unknown. This study investigated associations between objectively measured PA and SB, using hip-worn accelerometers, and cognitive functions in 334 office workers. Time spent in moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) was not associated with any cognitive outcome. However, time spent in SB tended to be positively associated with words recalled in free recall (β = 0.125). For the least fit participants, the average length of MVPA bouts was favourably related to Stroop performance (β = −0.211), while for the fitter individuals, a longer average length of MVPA bouts was related to worse recognition (β = −0.216). While our findings indicate that the length of MVPA bouts was associated with better Stroop performance in the least fit participants, our findings do not support the notion that more time spent in MVPA or less time in SB is associated with better cognitive function.

Suggested Citation

  • Emil Bojsen-Møller & Carl-Johan Boraxbekk & Örjan Ekblom & Victoria Blom & Maria M. Ekblom, 2019. "Relationships between Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviour and Cognitive Functions in Office Workers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(23), pages 1-15, November.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:16:y:2019:i:23:p:4721-:d:291243
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Lisa-Marie Larisch & Emil Bojsen-Møller & Carla F. J. Nooijen & Victoria Blom & Maria Ekblom & Örjan Ekblom & Daniel Arvidsson & Jonatan Fridolfsson & David M. Hallman & Svend Erik Mathiassen & Rui Wa, 2021. "Effects of Two Randomized and Controlled Multi-Component Interventions Focusing On 24-Hour Movement Behavior among Office Workers: A Compositional Data Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-20, April.
    2. Emerald G. Heiland & Örjan Ekblom & Emil Bojsen-Møller & Lisa-Marie Larisch & Victoria Blom & Maria M. Ekblom, 2021. "Bi-Directional, Day-to-Day Associations between Objectively-Measured Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior, and Sleep among Office Workers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(15), pages 1-12, July.
    3. Rianne H. J. Golsteijn & Hieronymus J. M. Gijselaers & Hans H. C. M. Savelberg & Amika S. Singh & Renate H. M. de Groot, 2021. "Differences in Habitual Physical Activity Behavior between Students from Different Vocational Education Tracks and the Association with Cognitive Performance," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-17, March.
    4. Rui Wang & Victoria Blom & Carla F. J. Nooijen & Lena V. Kallings & Örjan Ekblom & Maria M. Ekblom, 2021. "The Role of Executive Function in the Effectiveness of Multi-Component Interventions Targeting Physical Activity Behavior in Office Workers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(1), pages 1-14, December.

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