Fast walkers have higher IQ and larger brains than slow walkers.
🧵1/9
These findings are from a 5-decade cohort study of 904 participants in New Zealand published in @JAMANetworkOpen which tested the hypothesis that slow gait speed reflects accelerated biological aging at midlife. https://t.co/b929iWJGT3 2/9
Gait speed was correlated across the 3 walk conditions: usual vs dual task, usual vs maximum, and dual task vs maximum. 3/9
At age 45 years, participants completed a neuroimaging protocol to detect structural age-related features of the brain. Images were acquired using a 3-T magnetic resonance imaging scanner. 4/9
Neurocognitive function at age 45 years was assessed with the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–IV, which generates the overall full-scale IQ. 5/9
Slow gait was associated with multiple indices of compromised structural brain integrity, including smaller total brain volume, global cortical thinning, and reduced total surface area. 6/9
Slow gait at midlife was associated with poorer neurocognitive functioning across multiple cognitive domains; there was a mean difference of 16 IQ points (>1 SD) between the slowest and fastest walkers (ie, bottom vs top quintile). 7/9
Gait speed is used primarily to monitor the functional capacity of older adults and to forecast their rate of age-related decline, however these findings suggest that gait speed may not only be a geriatric concern. 8/9
Gait speed is more than just a geriatric index of adult functional decline; rather, it is a summary index of lifelong aging with possible origins in childhood CNS deficits. This helps to explain why gait can be such a powerful indicator of risk of disability and death. 9/9
Fast walkers have higher IQ and larger brains than slow walkers.
🧵1/9 These findings are from a 5-decade cohort study of 904 participants in New Zealand published in @JAMANetworkOpen which tested the hypothesis that slow gait speed reflects accelerated biological aging at midlife. https://t.co/b929iWJGT3 2/9 Gait speed was correlated across the 3 walk conditions: usual vs dual task, usual vs maximum, and dual task vs maximum. 3/9 At age 45 years, participants completed a neuroimaging protocol to detect structural age-related features of the brain. Images were acquired using a 3-T magnetic resonance imaging scanner. 4/9 Neurocognitive function at age 45 years was assessed with the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–IV, which generates the overall full-scale IQ. 5/9 Slow gait was associated with multiple indices of compromised structural brain integrity, including smaller total brain volume, global cortical thinning, and reduced total surface area. 6/9 Slow gait at midlife was associated with poorer neurocognitive functioning across multiple cognitive domains; there was a mean difference of 16 IQ points (>1 SD) between the slowest and fastest walkers (ie, bottom vs top quintile). 7/9 Gait speed is used primarily to monitor the functional capacity of older adults and to forecast their rate of age-related decline, however these findings suggest that gait speed may not only be a geriatric concern. 8/9Gait speed is more than just a geriatric index of adult functional decline; rather, it is a summary index of lifelong aging with possible origins in childhood CNS deficits. This helps to explain why gait can be such a powerful indicator of risk of disability and death. 9/9
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