Effect of Swimming on Cognition in Elderly

Previous studies report reduced risk of cognitive impairment in elderly who maintain higher levels of physical activity. Many studies also have proven that swimming has beneficial effect on skeletal and cardiovascular health. But studies to assess effects of swimming on cognitive health of elderly are lacking. This study was undertaken to assess and compare the level of cognition among elderly swimmers and non swimmers. 40 elderly subjects who regularly swim and 40 elderly non swimmers were recruited based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. Test for the cognitive domain executive function was performed with Category fluency and Verbal N back test to test Fluency and Working memory respectively. Results were statistically analyzed using students t test. In our study Elderly swimmers performed better than non swimmers in both the tests for executive function.