Research
Mixed
The protective effect of physical activity against dementia is conditional on APOE ε4 genotype, being significant only in non-carriers, and is attenuated or non-significant in long-term follow-up (22 years).
If you carry the APOE ε4 gene, physical activity may not protect your brain from dementia as effectively as it does for others. However, for those without this genetic risk factor, maintaining physical activity is a strong protective strategy against dementia, especially after age 75.
GoodQualifiesMEDIUM confidence
Secondary analysis revealed that this relation was limited to participants who were apolipoprotein (APO)E ε4 allele noncarriers (HR = 1.58, 95% CI = 1.08–2.32; p = .018)... In a longer follow-up period of up to 22 years... the relations of baseline physical activity to dementia or AD were not significant.
Why this rating
Consistent with other large cohort studies (Cardiovascular Health Cognition Study, AGES).
Source
Physical Activity, Brain Volume, and Dementia Risk: The Framingham Study
Zaldy S. Tan et al. · The Journals of Gerontology Series A · 2016
DOI 10.1093/gerona/glw130
cohort · n=3714Cited 208×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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