Memory decline linked to lower physical activity in later life

Older adults who experienced faster memory decline over a 17-year period were subsequently less physically active and spent more of their day inactive, according to new research using data from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA).

Older adults with less favourable memory trajectories are more likely to be less physically active and spend more of their day inactive in later life, according to a new study published in JAMA Network Open.

The research, led by Dr Mikaela Bloomberg of University College London, analysed changes in memory and verbal fluency over a period of up to 17 years among 2,529 participants in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA). Researchers then analysed physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep, measured using wrist-worn accelerometers during ELSA Wave 10.

Participants with more favourable memory trajectories subsequently spent more time engaging in light intensity physical activity and less time being sedentary, equivalent to around 90 additional minutes of physical activity per week. Among adults aged over 70, these differences were even greater, amounting to more than two hours of additional physical activity each week.

Differences in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and sleep were comparatively small.

The findings add to growing evidence that the relationship between physical activity and cognitive health works in both directions. While physical activity is often considered a way to help maintain cognitive function, the study suggests that cognitive decline may also contribute to changes in activity patterns as people age.

Dr Mikaela Bloomberg, lead author of the study, said: “Our findings suggest that lower levels of physical activity in later life may not simply be a cause of cognitive decline, but can also be a consequence of it. Older adults whose memory declined more rapidly over time were more likely to be less physically active and spend more time in sedentary behaviour years later.”

The researchers used repeated assessments of memory and verbal fluency collected between 2002 and 2019 to model individual cognitive trajectories. These were linked to accelerometer data collected between 2021 and 2023, allowing the team to examine how long-term cognitive change was associated with later movement behaviours across a full 24-hour day. The team accounted for activity patterns at baseline, so that later physical activity patterns did not just reflect earlier ones.

The associations were strongest for memory and were particularly pronounced among participants aged over 70. The study found similar but weaker patterns for verbal fluency.

The authors note that the results have implications for how researchers interpret links between physical activity and dementia risk. If declining cognitive function contributes to reduced activity levels, some of the associations observed in studies of physical activity and cognitive outcomes may reflect this reverse pathway.

The findings also point to the importance of maintaining cognitive health as part of efforts to support independence and wellbeing in older age.

Bloomberg, M., Brocklebank, L., Cavaillès, C., Doherty, A., Sabia, S. and Steptoe, A. (2026) ‘Cognitive trajectories and subsequent accelerometer-measured movement behavior in older adults’, JAMA Network Open, 9(5), e2613399. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2026.13399

Photo by Centre for Ageing Better