Vigorous exercise may preserve cognition in high-risk patients with hypertension

People with high blood pressure have a higher risk of cognitive impairment, including dementia, but a new study from researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine suggests that engaging in vigorous physical activity more than once a week can lower that risk. The findings appear online in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association. “We know that physical exercise offers many benefits, including lowering blood pressure, improving heart health and potentially delaying cognitive decline,” said Dr. Richard Kazibwe, assistant professor of internal medicine at Wake Forest University School of Medicine and lead author of the study. “However, the amount and the intensity of exercise needed to preserve cognition is unknown.” In 2015, published findings from the landmark Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT) showed that intensive blood pressure management reduced cardiovascular disease and lowered the risk of death. SPRINT began in the fall of 2009 and included more than 9,300 participants with hypertension ages 50 and older, recruited from about 100 medical centers and clinical practices throughout the United States. Participants were randomly assigned to a systolic blood pressure goal of either less than 120 mm Hg (intensive treatment) or less than 140 mm Hg (standard treatment)....