Presenter: Aron Myers, Kinesiology, Global Public Health Scholars
This semester I will be researching the effects of exercise on brain health with Dr. Smith’s team. The study examines cognitively healthy adults aged 60-89 who exercise less than 2 times a week. After a series of baseline assessments, participants are split into 2 groups and given an exercise program that gets progressively more difficult as the study continues. My roles in this process include administering some of the baseline physical assessments such as blood pressure, heart rate, sub max testing and other markers, data entry, participant outreach, and group fitness class instructor. Brain health is an extremely important area of interest in public health and this research seeks to make an association between exercise and Alzheimer’s prevention.
I especially appreciated how you share your own family story and how it makes you interested in learning more, including the impact of exercise on brain function and Alzheimer's Disease. You seem passionate enough to continue this important work, Aron. How do you work to convince others of the importance of making Alzheimer’s Disease a priority?
I found it very interesting that you had an emotional connection to the type of research that was being done. Did you find that doing research that related to you in that way made the research more interesting to you and provided a stronger commitment to it? I am planning on doing research for my practicum study as well and would love to be fully invested in it as you appear you were.
@scoffman Thanks for bringing up another interesting point. Up until the COVID outbreak, one exercise class included a treadmill group while the other participants attended an in person class. Due to stay at home orders, the study was continued but was modified to fit people's needs and abilities. The treadmill group was assigned to walk around their neighborhood instead of a treadmill, while the exercise class continued on Zoom using household objects. So, it is more a matter of performing the exercise and elevating the heart rate as opposed to how the exercise is performed. Although no findings have been published yet since the study is ongoing, those living in lower or middle class households in the US and a…
@laurenmacek0412: That is a very important observation since having a diverse sample is key for generalizing the findings of a study to a larger population. I think that some of the reasons for a lack of diversity include a lack of accessibility to the study and being unaware of the study. To increase diversity, I would further advertise the study in non-predominantly white areas and offer transportation and or other resources necessary to those interested in participating but are unable due to some restrictions.
Within your presentation, you mentioned that Alzheimer's disease is disproportionately affecting the poor and you would like to tailor certain regimens to help support those living in lower and middle class communities who are facing issues regarding their brain health. Are there any options that have been brainstormed that people living in these situations could do? How would the regimens designed for lower class communities differ between those of middle or upper class communities?
As a Kinesiology major, I very much enjoyed how you related a public health issue to the world of physical culture. Hopefully, I can do something similar in my practicum project. Thank you for the inspiration!