Effect of 10-Week Mind-Body Practices on Cognitive Functions, Psychoemotional State and Psychomotor Skills in Older Adults

Background: The increasing number of older people presents challenges in retaining their high functioning level and quality of life (Sander et al., 2015; WHO, 2018). Recently, mind-body practices have gained popularity in the older population. Tai Chi (TC) and Yoga both are considered beneficial in promoting independence in older age, as they impact both physical and mental health (Cramer et al., 2019; Yang et al., 2020); however, comparison of the effectiveness between these practices remains unclear.

Aim: The aim of the study was to compare the effectiveness of 10 weeks of TC and Yoga practice on cognitive functions, psychoemotional state and psychomotor skills in older adults.

Methods: The subjects were 48 untrained older men and women (age 67.3 ± 5.7 years), who were randomly assigned one of the three groups for a 10-week period. In the first group subjects had to take TC practice 2 times per week, 1 hour per session; in the second group subjects had to take Yoga practice 2 times per week, 1.5 hour per session; and in the third group subjects were asked to maintain their daily habits. Changes in the psychoemotional state on the Perceived Stress Scale-14 and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and cognitive and psychomotor performance on the Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics-4 battery were assessed.

Results: The study demonstrated no significant time × group interactions on the psychoemotional state. However, a significant time × group interaction was observed for response time in Procedural, Choice and Simple Reaction Time Tasks (p0.05), but not for GoNoGo, Matching Grids and Pursuit Tracking tasks. Further analysis revealed that TC decreased response time in Procedural and Choice Reaction Time Tasks, whereas Yoga increased response time in Simple Reaction Time.

Discussion and Conclusion: 10-week TC practice is more effective than Yoga practice for improving cognitive flexibility in older adults, whereas no differences on perceived stress, anxiety, depressive symptoms or other cognitive domains (i.e., inhibitory control and visuospatial processing) were observed. Additional research is required to determine the mechanisms related to the observed differences between these mind-body practices.